


Hallowed Moon

by herumtreiber



Category: Twilight (Movies), Twilight Series - All Media Types, Twilight Series - Stephenie Meyer
Genre: Action/Adventure, Drama, M/M, Romance, Slash, Vampire Sex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-02
Updated: 2013-01-17
Packaged: 2017-11-20 03:08:16
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 7
Words: 39,604
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/580627
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/herumtreiber/pseuds/herumtreiber
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Alice has a strange vision. Edward's feelings about Jacob come to the fore but is Carlisle's interpretation the correct one? Jacob and Edward embark on a journey that will take them to Tuscany. They face the Volturi and their growing feelings for each other as the very fabric of the world crumbles around them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The vision

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: All Twilight characters herein are the property of Stephenie Meyer. No copyright infringement is intended.  
> Written for the twilightbigbang 2011

**EPOV**  
  
My fingers glided on the white and black keys of the piano. Chopin's Etude in E major felt right for this moment but it failed to liberate me. It didn't make me forget what I was; I couldn't pretend there wasn't a hole in my soul. I shook my head, trying in vain to submerge myself in the music.  
  
There was a soft knock on the door. For a human it would have been imperceptible amid the notes of the piano, but I heard it distinctly. Besides, the mental images assaulting my mind could only come from one source.  
  
"Come in, Alice."  
  
My sister softly opened the door and walked inside with her usual gliding grace. I turned to look at her, noting she was wearing a blouse with a clerical collar over her red slacks. Alice's pixie hair was as carefully ruffled as always. Her ethereal face reflected the dim light coming from the half-opened window.  
  
"I notice you're in a pensive mood, Edward." Alice put her cold hand on my shoulder, her touch light as a butterfly.  
  
I pressed the A-major key, its jarring sound startling my sister. After closing the lid of the piano I stood up, ruffling my hair with my left hand.  
  
"How did you know, Alice?" I walked towards the windowpane, looking outside at the tall birches and oaks surrounding our house in Forks. It always struck me as weird that the serene view contrasted so sharply with our frenzied lives inside - if the doings of a soulless vampire could be construed as a life, which I doubted.  
  
"It's easy," Alice walked up to the piano and rubbed her thumb over the shiny wooden surface. "You always play Chopin when you're moody."  
  
I turned to look at her, smirking. "It isn't always true, Alice. Most times I play Debussy."  
  
"Whatever. You forget I can glimpse the future. I'm privy to certain information that--"  
  
I held up my hands, interrupting her. "You had a vision?"  
  
Alice took a deep breath, something very unnecessary for the likes of us. Yet it told me how seriously she considered the question. Breathing out with deliberation, she plunged resolutely ahead. "You could say that, stubborn brother of mine."  
  
I walked toward her and held her shoulder in a tight grip. One of the luxuries of dealing with my siblings was that I didn't have to measure my force. Alice could take whatever I gave her, unlike my fiancée.  
  
"Please tell me it doesn't have to deal with Bella." If my voice had a whiny tone, neither Alice nor I commented on it.  
  
She lifted her hand, touching my cheek with a soft touch as if preparing me for what she had to say, and my worries grew despite her next words. "It has to do with her, but don't worry, Edward. She's ok in my vision."  
  
Her words only troubled me more and I had to sit down on the piano bench. It wasn't like Alice to dance around the subject. She usually talked my ears off.  
  
I looked up at her, raising my eyebrow inquiringly.  
  
"I've been watching her, just as you told me to."  
  
I nodded. After the scare when Alice told me Bella had died of despair, jumping off that cliff, I'd asked my sister to keep an eye on her. I'd cheated when I manipulated Bella. I popped the marriage question to her during graduation when she felt especially happy. I wanted to ensure that our courtship would not endanger her life.  
  
And the Volturi. I could not forget how predatorily Aro had watched my fiancée. How the leader of the vampires insisted I had to turn my Bella.  
  
The truth was that perils seemed to reach beyond the ocean, menacing the mortal girl's life. As if there weren't enough predators in her life already; as if she wasn't friends with the shapeshifters, the Quileute boys that could become enraged in a second and kill her or maim her, disfiguring her exquisite face.  
  
"Edward, Bella disappeared from my visions."  
  
I was startled and gripped Alice's shoulder too tightly, even for a vampire. She grimaced in pain. Instantly I released her, shrugging in apology.  
  
Alice toyed with the hem of her blouse, apparently pondering how to tell me what she saw. She looked up at me, her amber eyes squinting as if recalling her vision.  
  
Finally she continued, "Don't worry, she reappeared later. But she wasn't in Forks."  
  
She raised her hand to touch my lips, forestalling my questions. "I could tell by the arid scenery that she was in the south, probably in Arizona or New Mexico. There was a stucco wall. Maybe a Spanish colonial house?"  
  
"Was she safe?" I couldn't keep the tremor from my voice. If Bella was in one of those inaccessible places - where the unmerciful sun would betray me instantly - then I couldn't protect her.  
  
"Bella was safe, Edward. She was also with another man." Alice's voice grew quieter; she finished in an inaudible whisper that I could easily hear with my sharp, accursed senses. "They were kissing. In fact, the man was groping her."  
  
I growled in fury at the thought of someone else touching the girl I wanted to marry. I felt like ripping something. If I'd been in my room I would've started throwing around my books and CDs, destroying the shelves and releasing my anger in the inanimate objects. An enraged vampire is dangerous to himself and whatever mortal he might encounter.  
  
"Bella seemed to enjoy it," continued Alice in a louder voice. My sister appeared to make up her mind about something; her thoughts, which had been murky, suddenly acquired a sharp edge.  
  
Reading her mind, I frowned. I was very confused by her train of thought. "What's the goddamned mutt had to do with it, Alice?"  
  
"The thing is, Bella disappeared from my visions for like… one hour?"  
  
I nodded, figuring that Alice thought Bella was spending time with the dog. She hadn't been alarmed enough to notify me.  
  
"While Bella was absent, I searched for her. Haven't told you this, Edward, but sometimes when I have visions there are three or more. They are all indistinct, as if they were, I don't know… ghosts? Like in the television sets... you remember the shows in the Fifties?"  
  
I nodded, recalling distinctly the old TV set Carlisle bought when they first came out. Or rather when the weak signal could be received even in Alaska, where we were staying at the time. Sometimes there were two or more images, kind of superimposed on each other that made viewing difficult. Alice should have known that I had pried in her mind and was well acquainted with the phenomenon she spoke of. That fuzziness to her visions was so intense that sometimes I got a ghost headache from delving into her mind, so I'd decided to tread cautiously when I read Alice's thoughts.  
  
"Anyway, suddenly I could dimly see the dog Bella hangs out with, what's his name? Jacob Black." Alice walked to the bench chair and sat down, touching softly the cover. She idly lifted it and fingered the ebony and ivory keys as if trying to collect her thoughts.  
  
"What happened then?" I was very worried because this portended no good. I wanted nothing to do with the mutt. If Alice could suddenly sense him, it could only mean that he had lost his _muttness,_ his shapeshifting qualities. That would make him a formidable enemy in our fight for Bella.  
  
"The vision suddenly became quite clear, but I still saw Jacob," said Alice as if measuring the name in her tongue. I thought it was the first time I heard her say it - usually she just called him 'dog.'  
  
I paced back and forth, willing for her to continue. Alice, who usually was so direct, took her sweet time telling her story. I knew that I had to let her tell it like she wanted. I could not just pry the information out her head because her interpretations were often the meat of her visions.  
  
"Let me backtrack for a second." Alice frowned, taking a deep, unneeded breath as she recalled her vision.  
  
"When the mutt appeared, it was like there were three different scenarios," continued my sister. "To go on with the TV analogy, they were like different shows. I was so startled that I could see Jacob, at first I didn't notice where he was."  
  
"Why do you call him that, Alice? You usually just say 'the dog'. Has he lost his stupid powers?"  
  
Alice waved her hand in the air, dismissing my concerns as silly. At least her mind formed that thought while she pondered her words.  
  
I growled, wishing for her to finish explaining.  
  
"Doesn't matter now, Edward. What's important is this: in two of the visions the dog was here in Forks, in an old house with peeling paint. Haven't seen where he lives on the Reservation, but it must have been there because I also saw Chief Swan."  
  
"Bella's father was with him? I think the Chief is friends with Billy Black, so that's not surprising." I shrugged, trying to appear nonchalant, but I wasn't fooling Alice.  
  
"That's what told me he was in Forks. I know the Chief and he hasn't traveled far. But those images disappeared just when I was concentrating in the vision." Alice closed her eyes for a second. I knew that was a subtle invitation to probe her mind; therefore I dived into her thoughts.  
  
Indeed, it seemed like Black's house from Bella's description. She spent too much time there for my liking. There was a decrepit TV and Chief Swan was talking with Jacob, but there seemed to be two of them, wavering in and out of the vision just like the TV ghosts Alice spoke of.  
  
There was a certain grainy quality to it. Indeed it felt as if it was an old TV show and the commercials for an old Cadillac would just appear; the presenter would jump out from behind the ratty couch and point towards the table and a shiny white car would pop up into the domestic scene.  
  
Alice's words jarred me, yanking me out from her thoughts and into the reality of the situation.  
  
"The third scene coalesced then, but it shifted and I knew Jacob wasn't in Forks. I realized he wasn't in America at all." Alice's voice descended in pitch.  
  
"Where was he?"  
  
"First I noticed the marble floor, then the streaming light from the colored windowpanes. Next I saw the buttressed arches above Jacob." Alice rubbed her forehead, touching distractedly a curl of her hair.  
  
I felt anxiety and if I had been a mortal man, I was sure that I'd felt a cold hand wrap around my unbeating heart, for I realized I knew well the place Alice was describing.  
  
"Black was with the Volturi." Hearing my raspy voice, I hardly recognized it, bereft of the usual sensual timbre.  
  
Alice nodded her assent. "Aro was there, so was Caius. The blond Volturi was snarling at Jacob. He was seated on his throne, just like when we were there."  
  
I noticed she'd left out a name of the triumvirate of vampires that ruled our world. "What about Marcus?"  
  
Alice wrapped her arms around herself as if she was cold - an impossibility for us whose skin is as cold as the marble that decorates the ornate catacombs where the Volturi hold their councils and revels.  
  
"Didn't see Marcus at first." Alice stood up from the bench and walked towards me, her face scrunched up in confusion. "That was because he was just behind Jacob. It was strange, he was smiling at the dog."  
  
"And the vision ended?" There was a tentative quality to my voice which I didn't like because it betrayed - even if unconsciously -my preoccupation with the mutt, my rival for Bella's affection. Though I felt sure she would never choose him over me.  
  
"No, it got worse." Alice put her hand on my shoulder and leaned towards me. "I don't think I can tell you this, Edward. You have to see for yourself."  
  
I closed my eyes. Leaving our house behind, I dived into Alice's mind.  
  
I saw the mutt. He wore one of those black tight jeans that he liked to prance around in, and a black T-shirt. I couldn't help but notice his slim waist, broadening to his massive shoulders. I couldn't hear what he said but his posture was aggressive as he faced Marcus.  
  
Black's unblemished russet-colored skin glistened with sweat. Trapped in Alice's vision, my feelings for the mutt appeared to change. I sensed a yearning to touch Black, to ruffle his short hair, dark as his name. I wondered how strong this prophetic scene was that it could change my perception of Jacob.  
  
His muscles twitched. It seemed as if the handsome mutt was ready to make his escape from the lair of the Volturi, something I knew was impossible. I tried to edge away from the vision, sensing a perceptible change in my feelings towards the dog but it was useless. The vision gripped me like a mental steel vise.  
  
I was forced to endure what followed. Marcus shook his head, his noble face sad as always. Aro, who was seated on the middle throne, gazed at one of the Volturi guards.  
  
In the vision, I didn't have to turn to see Demetri, standing next to Jane. The petite blonde vampire appeared to be sad for a change, ruby-red eyes looking warily at the pretty mutt. Jane seemed to disagree with the decision of the vampire leader but as always, her first allegiance would be towards Aro.  
  
Demetri rushed towards the mutt and I couldn't help but cry out in distress at what I imagined would happen. I didn't know if it was the in present or the future, I just shouted, "Watch out, Jake!"  
  
Jacob crouched and instantly transformed. The enormous, magnificent russet-colored wolf appeared immense, facing the assembled Volturi. But I knew it was quite the contrary, the seemingly frail vampires could destroy the shapeshifter in a few seconds. I trembled when I imagined the dog dying. There was a place in my mind that could not conceive of a life without Jacob Black, the infuriating Quileute that defied me and challenged me constantly, the only one that was immune to my vampire allure and charm.  
  
In the telescopic time of the vision, I had time enough to picture Jacob as he was the time he faced me in the parking lot at Forks High. There was boldness, a masculine vitality unique to the mutt's demeanor that I couldn't help but admire and envy. At times I feared Bella would sense this and choose him over me, but she always succumbed to my hypnotic charm, as I knew she would.  
  
Jacob never did, he always stood proud and defiant, the very definition of the Quileutes. A mighty descendant of the tribe Carlisle signed the pact with. The people that adhered scrupulously to its strictures generation after generation, even though their every instinct urged them to fight us to the death.  
  
It would hurt me unbearably to see that handsome face lifeless, to know that the irrepressible grin that was never directed towards me would stop gracing Jake's face.  
  
It seemed that my feelings about Jacob Black ran deeper than I thought.  
  
Trapped in the relentless vision, I was forced to face what I had long sought to suppress, what my mortal upbringing in Illinois in the 1910's bitterly condemned. The long decades spent hiding from mortals and listening to their prejudices made me repress what I truly felt, a keen desire for the wolf. All the passion exchanged during our snarling fights, it was a deflection of the forbidden feelings I'd fought against for so long. Attitudes that were increasingly accepted by society but had been stamped, imprinted upon me from earliest childhood.  
  
I desired the wolf. I yearned to dominate the man, to be dominated by him. I wanted that chiseled visage to look at me with something other than contempt. The tall Quileute, the fitting warrior for his tribe.  
  
I watched the wolf face the pale vampires, Jacob snarled as Demetri grabbed his furred neck. He reared back, silently howling in Alice's weird vision.  
  
The strangest thing was yet to come. Before Demetri could destroy the shapeshifter, the doors to the Volturi chamber were thrown open. The pale Volturi paused and looked at the open entrance with an astounded expression, a stark contrast to his usual calm mien.  
  
A black blur approached the fighting pair, and I was astonished to see it was me who apparently rushed to help my rival.  
  
I saw my face, pale as marble, twisted in a grimace of hate and anger that wasn't directed at the shapeshifter, rather at Demetri and the other Volturi guards.  
  
The wolf looked at me in the vision and lifted his muzzle, distracting Demetri so I - or rather the future me - could grab the vampire's arm, twisting it away from Jacob so violently it appeared to crack.  
  
I didn't have time to see anything else because the vision disappeared. I was yanked to the present with an odd feeling of disorientation. This time Alice's premonition had been so strong that I asked myself whether it was more than that. Maybe her powers were developing so strongly that she could submerge herself in her visions in such a way that it became real, if only for the short time it lasted.  
  
Alice grabbed my arm and touched my face with her left hand. Her cool palm managed to soothe me, to convince me that I was back in the present, that her vision remained only a possibility. That Jacob Black did not have to die at the hands of the Volturi.  
  
"You see why I'm so concerned, Edward?" Alice's voice betrayed her nervousness; it lacked its usual warm tone.  
  
"What happens next in your premonition?" I shuffled with an unsteady gait to the window, peering at the verdant forest outside, mulling what the vision what revealed both about Jacob's situation and my true feelings for the mutt.  
  
"It ended right when you broke Demetri's arm."  
  
Alice stepped towards me, stopping when she reached the shelf filled with musical scores. My sister picked one at random, ruffling it nervously. She seemed to study it intently but her mind was far away. I smirked when I saw she had picked up the score for the Mozart piece I wanted to arrange for Bella as a birthday gift, a Divertimento.  
  
"And the mutt?" I couldn't help but shiver when I remembered the indomitable wolf snarling defiantly, facing alone the Volturi guards. I could not leave the shapeshifter to fight on his own the invincible Volterra vampires. In my mind, I started planning how I would convince my family so we could protect the stubborn mutt.  
  
"Jacob is still in my visions. The last one I had? Turns out the mutt likes to watch American Idol. Who would've thought?" Alice's levity was welcomed and I sneered, thinking of the Quileute trying to explain his musical tastes to Bella, though probably she watched it too.  
  
Suddenly Alice clapped her hands, apparently satisfied with having thrown my world upside down. Leaving me no time to question her further, she said, "Have to go now. I convinced Bella to go shopping in Seattle. There's a new boutique that has all the latest from the McQueen Fall collection."  
  
Before I could protest, my troublesome sister slipped away, closing the door softly - leaving me embroiled in doubt.  


 

oOoOo

  
  
"I'm worried, son. You and Alice seemed very distraught today." Carlisle's handsome face reflected his concern. I'd spent the rest of the day closeted in the music room. I tried to play but nothing seemed to fit, to lift me away from the claustrophobic sense of doom that encapsulated me since Alice showed me her vision.  
  
Neither Brahms nor Prokofiev did the trick. When I tried an old jazz piece I'd heard in the Oregon of the Sixties, I just couldn't concentrate enough to perform it properly. In my growing restlessness I'd even considered playing an old country music ditty I'd heard on the radio, but my innate dislike for that genre prevailed.  
  
I crossed my arms behind my neck, reclining on the plushy chair in front of Carlisle's desk.  
  
"I had a revelation of sorts today, father."  
  
After Carlisle nodded, leaning back on his leather chair, I proceeded to relate Alice's vision. I spared nothing, telling my father about the feelings the vision had awakened in me, or rather the submerged tendencies that had come to light in the stress of the future.  
  
Talking with Carlisle was always a treat for me because his demeanor, his understanding and compassionate face assured me that I would be fully heard. I wondered at the injustice of the world that such a marvelous man would be condemned - like all of us vampires - to a life of eternal temptation.  
  
Carlisle frowned when I told him about the Volturi, especially when I mentioned Caius.  
  
"You have no idea what Caius said, son?"  
  
I shook my head, too caught up in the telling of the tale to venture a guess.  
  
"Edward, you have to remember Caius' special gift." Carlisle took out a black pen from his shirt and toyed with it. "Or should I say, his curse. I think he was analyzing, sensing Jacob's aura to determine if he was mated. Maybe he thought his mate was Bella."  
  
I growled unconsciously at the thought of the mutt and Bella being mates. Would the wolf imprint on her in the future? With a start, I realized I was jealous - not of Jacob, but of Bella.  
  
I just couldn't picture her with the handsome mutt, the shapeshifter I was sure I hated until the relentless vision made me realize otherwise.  
  
I plodded on, doggedly telling Carlisle about the vision. I didn't spare my feelings, speaking with the candor I knew my father appreciated. I was sure I would have blushed, had I been still human, when I told him about my growing realization, my ambivalent feelings toward Jacob Black.  
  
Carlisle just nodded sagely, venturing a question at the right moment to better gauge my feelings. I knew that he, who had lived through such turmoil through the centuries, surely had witnessed worse behavior. Besides, Carlisle had lived with the Volturi; he knew intimately the _modus operandi_ of the Etruscan vampires.  
  
"Let me clarify, Edward. You say Aro didn't try to stop Demetri?"  
  
I nodded. "Aro had that maniacal glint in his eyes, you know?"  
  
Carlisle replied in his soothing voice, "I'm well acquainted with that, son."  
  
"He appeared uninterested, as if it wasn't his concern. Carlisle, I must admit I was rather interested in… Jacob."  
  
I lowered my gaze to the desk, evading the penetrating stare of my father. I just couldn't quite grasp how a minute shift in my feelings for the mutt had opened this vast chasm of inchoate feelings. Things I had long repressed and thought forgotten seemed to rise from the bottom of my dead heart; what I had sought to forget when I courted Bella.  
  
I rushed through the fight scene. I didn't tell Carlisle the layout of the scene, describing instead my mental landscape when I watched it.  
  
"Please tell me how you looked, son… I mean the future you." Carlisle stared at his pen as if it had gotten to his hand by mistake and put it in the pocket of his white coat. I felt ashamed at that, knowing he was probably tired from dealing with the patients and had been looking forward to a relaxed evening with Esmée. Instead he was forced to listen to his son's awkward tale.  
  
I described what I could about the Edward of the vision, how he had faced Demetri and fought him, together with Jacob.  
  
My father interrupted me. "Edward, let me point out that-"  
  
Carlisle fumbled for words; his uncharacteristic pause told me he might be remembering an unpleasant episode from his stay with the Volturi.  
  
"I know Aro's mind quite well. You fought Demetri and he didn't order the other members of the Volturi to attack you."  
  
Carlisle put his elbows on the desk, leaning forward. "That tells me he wasn't that interested in Jacob's death. I think Demetri acted precipitously. There were divisions within the Volturi and Aro wanted to see how things went before he pronounced his judgment."  
  
I rushed through the latter part of the vision.  
  
Carlisle fixed his gaze on the window. Night had fallen, but he hadn't turned on the light since neither of us was particularly inconvenienced by its lack. Our keen vision allowed us to see perfectly well, a predator feature I sometimes hated but now seemed useful.  
  
"Let me assure you I appreciate your honesty, Edward." My father opened a drawer and took out a small leather book. I noticed that it was dog-eared; the pages - what I could see of them - were yellowed and torn.  
  
"You shouldn't be ashamed of your feelings, your orientation… if that is one of the conclusions you draw from your vision." Carlisle's approval eased my mind considerably. Despite knowing my father perfectly well, I still yearned to hear him say that he accepted me, no matter what.  
  
"I've grown accustomed to people's changing mores. What is unacceptable one day becomes the norm the next century and vice versa. You have nothing to be ashamed of, Edward."  
  
Carlisle tapped the book, opening it at random and reading the page in the darkness. "I'm interested in the vision. You told me Alice said it was like seeing ghosts on an ancient TV set."  
  
My father smiled wryly; in his thoughts he was fondly recalling our dumbfounded expressions when we saw our first TV show.  
  
"After I left the Volturi I wandered across Europe. I think it was around 1840, at any rate before the final revolution in France, when I read about the curious case of the man who walked around the horses."  
  
I lifted my eyebrow inquiringly, wondering what that had to do with anything. I tried to read my father's mind, but he was carefully thinking about nothing in particular. Finally I sighed in frustration. "And?"  
  
"The diplomat was at an inn. He walked around the horses of his carriage but he didn't reach the other side. He vanished in plain daylight, in front of numerous witnesses." Carlisle sighed wistfully.  
  
He read from the book. "He was Benjamin Bathurst, a British diplomat who vanished in Prussia, I guess during the Napoleonic wars."  
  
Carlisle frowned, fingering the brittle page as if afraid it would break. "Yes, it was in 1809."  
  
I crossed my legs in the darkness, sighing in frustration. "I don't see how that applies to my situation, father."  
  
Carlisle put the book back on the drawer and closed it softly. He leaned towards me and whispered, "I've often wondered what happened to that man. How was it possible for him to vanish in broad daylight? Could it be that he just entered another realm?"  
  
"What do you mean, Carlisle?"  
  
"Alice's premonitions. Sometimes they happen just the way she sees them and sometimes they can be changed and never occur at all. Maybe for every outcome that we change, another realm is created." Carlisle stood up and went to the door, turning on the lights.  
  
"You mean like an alternate reality? That man who disappeared, he went to a parallel world?" I wrestled with the notion and gave up after a while. All those years studying the same subjects in high school had dulled my capacity for wonder.  
  
"Exactly, son. You told me about Alice's telling remark. She felt she was watching ghosts, she saw three different versions of Jacob, two at home and one abroad. This leads me to the conclusion that she saw three different worlds." Carlisle went to the window and touched the windowpane. He was debating whether to open it and let the fresh air inside but he changed his mind when he heard the sound of thunder in the distance.  
  
Carlisle turned and looked at me intently. "Could it be that the reason your sister can suddenly see Jacob in her visions is because the Jake she sees comes from a realm different than ours? An alternate reality, as you so quaintly put it?"  


 

oOoOo

  
  
"Edward, you're a million miles away." Bella sighed exasperatedly, fidgeting with the belt around her waist. She was fumbling, trying to open the buckle.  
  
I had been in a distracted state of mind, mulling in my mind the implications of Carlisle's words. I was afraid I hadn't been paying much attention to Bella. She appeared to be mad because her friend Jessica was snubbing her, spreading false rumors about our relationship. Frankly I was relieved that Jessica didn't seem as obsessed with me as she'd been. It had been a chore to witness the girl's fantasies about me.  
  
I bent down and opened Bella's security belt with a swift motion of my hand. I was so intent on her and the worrisome vision that I didn't notice the shadow approaching the door of the Volvo; the maelstrom of the wolf's emotions hit me when it was too late.  
  
The door was yanked violently open with the force that only a shapeshifter could muster. Someone grabbed my arm and jerked me out of the car. I went unresistingly because I felt the man's churning thoughts. I didn't want to make a spectacle in the parking lot.  
  
"What's this I hear about Bella and you, fucking leech?" Black's voice was rough with anger.  
  
The mutt growled at me, "Is it true what Embry told me, you slept with Bella?"  
  
Jacob let go of my arm and took a step back. He was shirtless as usual and my gaze inevitably drifted down from his handsome face to his toned chest, lingering a moment in his erect nipples before continuing downward, gliding through his chiseled abs. I noticed that he was wearing tight jeans that hugged his slim hips perfectly.  
  
I couldn't help but smirk when I read Jacob's mind. It seemed that despite his words, he appeared to resent the thought that it was Bella I had supposedly slept with, not him. But I didn't weigh the impact my gesture would have on Jacob.  
  
He pushed my chest violently. If I'd been a mortal, I would have fallen. Instead I just felt a tingling from Jacob's hand.  
  
"Stop it, you two!" Bella stepped between us, glaring at Jacob. "I haven't slept with my fiancé… not that it is any concern of yours, Jake!"  
  
Bella raised her arm, intent on hitting Jacob but I stopped her, knowing she would only hurt her hand.  
  
"You haven't?" Jacob frowned cutely, stepping back. He crossed his arms and his pectorals bulged. "But Embry said--"  
  
"Whatever your nosy friend said, he probably heard it from Jessica. I swear that girl's very jealous of me and Edward," huffed Bella.  
  
She glared at Jacob, hefting her school bag as if debating whether to hit him with it. "Are you going to believe that bitch or me, Jacob Black? Don't you trust me?"  
  
Jacob ruffled his short hair and essayed a smile. "Sure, sure, Bells. I'm... sorry, kay?"  
  
I didn't pay too much attention to the mutt's words; instead I delved into his mind. There was something decidedly different, a strange echo that I hadn't noted before in Jacob. Could it be that Carlisle was right and this was another version of the Quileute?

 

 

 


	2. The meadow

 

 

Bella and I had slowly drifted apart during the last days of summer. It might have been Alice telling me about her vision, or perhaps it was something between us that was hidden and surfaced because of it. The bond that once joined us seemed to fray at the edges.

I couldn't get anything out of Bella, but when I studied Chief Swan's mind I found out that a friend of hers from Phoenix, a certain Nathan Johnson, often visited her. He stayed for hours in her room. Surprisingly, I didn't feel jealous at all. The strength of Alice's clairvoyance affected me and shifted my feelings.

I felt as if a burden had been lifted from me. Thanks to my sister I knew that Bella had a happy, sunny future waiting for her. She would not become a monster like me; she would get to live a happy, normal life.

I examined this weird sense of estrangement from Bella, wondering if it had been present before Alice told me of her vision and Carlisle expressed his theory of different worlds.

As I watched the other strand of the Quillayute River opposite me, listening to the melodious sound of running water, I felt as if I was near some enlightened thought that would answer my questions. The meadow was very peaceful, a stark contrast to the usual turmoil of my thoughts. The petals of a flower floated serenely on the small pond by my side.

I'd read about visions in scholarly papers I stole from Washington University. According to one theory, the future revealed by them could not be changed. It had to exist for the premonition to occur. If that was the case, how could it be that sometimes we were able to derail the circumstances that caused the vision?

I took out from the pocket of my denim jacket the slim sci-fi book the friendly librarian had advised me to get. I needed to wrap my mind around the concepts surrounding the notion of alternate realities. I smiled when I remembered the conversation.

* * *

\--

"You can look up Dr. Hawking's book." The middle-aged woman adjusted her glasses, looking up at me from the screen where she'd been entering data in a spreadsheet. I was amused that in her mind, she thought I was just a cute distraught student. It wasn't that she didn't find me attractive; she just preferred men like George Clooney.

"Do you think that'll help me?"

"It should. Dr. Hawking has a great theory involving thermodynamics, cosmological arrows, entropy and-"

As the enthusiastic librarian went on, my mind inevitably wandered, repelled by the highly abstract language the woman used. The level of the physics classes I'd taken all these years hadn't prepared me to deal with such sophisticated theories.

I held up my hand and used my most charming smile. "Sorry, but that will be too complicated for the op-ed article my school paper requires. Don't you have, you know, more basic stuff?"

The woman snorted indignantly; in her mind she was bemoaning the lack of academic drive of the current generation of students. Nevertheless she opened another browser window in the desktop computer she was using. She finally clicked on a link and sniffed, lifting her glasses and grabbing a pen to note the shelf number.

She gave me the small piece of paper. "Years ago I read a good story by Larry Niven. It's called _'All the myriad ways.'_ Very intriguing, but I'm sure it won't be enough for-"

I snatched the piece of paper from her hand as if it were manna from heaven, smiling demurely. "That'll do for a start. I'll come back when I need more info. You've been most helpful, Mrs…"

"Wickham. Be sure to look up Dr. Hawking's book though, if you want to prepare a thorough report."

"Will do."

* * *

\--

I closed the slim paperback, caressing its soft cover while I mused about the story. Frankly it was quite depressing. The protagonist couldn't deal with multiple realities. I found it hard to concentrate on the book because I was thinking about Jake in Alice's vision. The way his biceps bulged, his chest heaved and his pert nipples stood erect in the cold catacomb beneath Volterra.

I hadn't noticed how handsome the wolf had grown lately. Then I corrected myself, Jake had always been strikingly good-looking. The reason I hated him at first sight was because with his long, ebony hair cascading around his sharp cheekbones, framing them most enticingly, and with his dark eyes glinting with humor he was prettier than Bella. It had been distracting.

I was afraid she would choose him over me when Bella showed interest in the mutt. After all, he had many things I didn't. He offered Bella the prospect of raising kids and having a normal family life. He was determined and hard-working, a good model for his tribe.

I picked up the book, trying to read some more. After gleaning the information that the man was going to off himself, I threw it on the pond. I sneered at the paperback as it sank below the rippling water. The small waves originated right in the center of the pond and spread across its dark surface. It was funny how the small disturbance affected the whole pond, just like Alice's revelation about the future threatened my relationship with Bella. Though if I was honest, that relationship appeared to have disintegrated just as surely as the withered petals of the flower whose smell still lingered in the air.

Bella would be happy with her guy; but where would I find that closeness I once shared with the brunette girl? I snorted angrily, inhaling the sweet scent of the pine needles all around me.

Just then I caught the elusive scent I'd perceived on the outskirts of the Volturi's citadel under the Italian sky. I sprang up, forgetting momentarily the doubts about my lonely future as I ran towards the copse to my left. Snarling, I crouched, ready to face the enemy.

Jane's sanguinary thoughts struck me like the cold water of the nearby Quillayute. I was scared for Bella and Jacob, my family, and Forks.

She glided across the meadow as weightlessly as the spring fog, silent and elegant. Her blond hair was neatly tied in her signature braid while her black cloak billowed like it was the cape of a marble Greek statue come to life. Jane's eyes were red beryl. I grunted when she smiled predatorily.

The petite blond vampire lifted her slim hand. "Greetings, Edward Cullen!"

"What do you want?" I trembled, ready to spring at the deadly vampire; knowing it would be useless if she decided to use her powers.

"Do not fret, for I do not intend to harm you!" Jane smirked; her usual predatory smile was absent this time. In her thoughts there was a gnawing preoccupation, a kind of anxiety unlike anything I'd ever received from a Volturi.

I took a step towards her. "What brings you to America?"

Jane crossed her slim arms as a stray sunbeam shined on her hands, making them glitter like deadly diamonds. "I trust Carlisle has told you about the extreme variety of our… talents."

I shook my head nervously. I hesitated to bare the intimacies of our family life to the slim, deadly beauty, but I decided I had no other choice. If Jane wanted it, she could easily summon the rest of the Volturi guard and wreak havoc on Forks. She could even decide to kill the shapeshifters and Jacob.

My mind strayed to the scene I witnessed in Alice's vision, the wolf defending himself valiantly against the combined might of the Volturi. I could not risk Jacob's life; I would not taunt Jane with half-truths.

"He told me enough. Carlisle is notoriously reticent about the time he spent with the court." I sneered, recalling the confrontation when I almost lost my undead life and Bella valiantly saved my hide. "I seem to remember when your friends showed their prowess."

She waved her arm, dismissing my pointed reference. "That is not germane to the issue that brings me here, Edward. Let it be known that amongst my talented siblings, we have a new… shall we say recruit?"

She glided towards the pond and bent down, catching the soaked paperbook and looking at it with obvious distaste. "Whatever. This girl comes from a Russian coven, somewhere in the Urals. She is a powerful Seer. She's the reason Aro no longer thirsts for your sister's presence in our court."

I listened entranced to Jane's explanations as I sought to read her mind. She had cast a rudimentary shield on her inner thoughts, but dread percolated her awareness. A strange fear not for herself or the Volturi but for all vampires - and I was surprised to find out - for mortals.

Jane hefted the soiled book in her slim hand, marveling at it. She read the distorted letters of the cover and turned her head to me. "I find your taste in literature odd, Edward. One would think that after you rubbed shoulders with us and our cultured environment, you would-"

I lifted my hand to stop her. I didn't want to be lectured in supposed cultural superiority by an uppity European vampire. "Sure, the Volturi are patrons of the arts … when they are not feeding on the poor artists!"

Jane threw the book towards the Quillayute River without bothering to check where it landed. "You are such a child, Edward! Aro would do wonders to rectify your provincial attitude."

I crossed my arms, trying to read her thoughts. It was useless because she carefully shied away from the reasons for her visit to Forks. I opened my mouth to offer a sarcastic remark but I changed my mind, realizing it was not the best course of action.

Finally I hazarded a question. "That vampire you speak of, Jane. I guess she's a better Seer than Alice?"

Jane smiled fondly, and odd gesture coming from the usually sinister Volturi. "Irina is way beyond your sister. She glimpses visions within visions."

Jane walked with her usual grace towards the tallest cedar just to the right of me. She touched its rough bark with a pensive expression. "Irina has tried to explain it to me. She says it's like holding a _Matruschka_ doll in her head. You've heard of those?"

Jane turned to look at me, her ruby eyes gazing at me sharply as if willing me to understand the import of her words.

I shrugged nonchalantly. "You mean those dolls that have others inside them?"

She nodded and went on, enthusiasm lending an almost mystical tone to her sweet voice. "You open a doll and it has another one inside, and so on. Irina tells me the first vision the clairvoyants get doesn't need to be the final one. Often there's hidden meaning trapped inside it. Really good seers will see beyond the veils and get a glimpse of a deeper vision."

I ruffled my hair. This talk of visions and portends was making me very nervous. Sometimes I hated Alice's premonitions, helpful as they were, because they struck fear in my bones.

"So this Irina gets a double vision?"I cocked my eyebrow at the tiny Volturi who was standing still near the cedar, smiling as if this Russian vampire were her best friend.

"No, Edward. Irina tells me she glimpses a fourth level! There are deeper ones but what she sees is very indistinct and doesn't make sense. Not even Aro, after he's touched her-"

Jane stopped, obviously realizing she shouldn't be telling me the inner workings of the Volturi court. She waved her arm airily and continued. "Doesn't matter. Suffice it to say her powers are beyond your sister's ken. Irina's told us about a danger so great it could destroy-"

"The Volturi?"

"Don't be a child, Edward!"Jane glared at me, crossing her arms across her bosom as the sunlight cut fine diamonds out of her slim hands. "Though we value our lives, we exist only to serve!"

I felt dismay when her words and her thoughts became somewhat clearer. "You mean all vampires could be destroyed?"

Jane huffed, gliding across the meadow until she was right in front of me. "Way off the mark, Edward! We live on the sufferance of the mortals. We feed off them. The danger's so great, it could destroy them too!"

Jane frowned, her gaze drifting across the river to the Quileute territory. "That's what brings me here."

Recalling Aro's almost obsessive need to turn Bella into a vampire, I suspected Jane wanted to expedite this and use Bella's powers to aid them, so they could stop whatever it was that threatened us all.

I faced resolutely the deadly vampire in a slight crouch, my arms ready to wrap around her and fight her to the death if need be. I wouldn't allow Bella to be turned against her will, no matter if our relationship hadn't proved as solid as I once thought.

"I won't let you hurt Bella!" My voice sounded unusually harsh in the peaceful meadow, devoid of its usual smooth quality.

Jane lifted an eyebrow, apparently amused by my reaction. "Don't worry. We won't need your precious _Singer_ for this."

She pointed at the Quileute territory with a graceful sweep of her arm. For a moment her gesture brought to my mind the wings of a predatory bird just before its swoops down on its prey. "Irina has told us the dogs over there are the cause of this or the solution, she isn't sure which."

I crouched lower to the ground, growling as I remembered Alice's vision involving Jake fighting in the Volterra catacombs. With a strange sense of déjà-vu I felt ready to fight for the stubborn mutt against the mighty Volturi, even if he never got to hear about it. "I won't let you hurt them!"

Jane made tsking sounds and pouted. "You don't know us very well, Edward."

"You're monsters!"

"Nonetheless, we don't want to hurt the dogs yet. Though Caius isn't fond of them, Aro and Marcus prevailed and the Volturi guard will follow their lead." Jane's mind took a distinct pleasurable tone, recalling the deadly Volturi political games inside their court.

"What are you going to do? Why did you seek me?" My voice sounded desperate to my ears. I hadn't changed my fighting stance, ready to pounce on the petite vampire.

"The court is aware of the uncertain truce between your coven and the dogs." Jane's intense gaze seemed to pierce me. It appeared as if she was on the brink of using her powers.

"And?"

"We want you to study them, to get close. To nudge them in the right direction when the time comes, so the catastrophe can be averted." Approaching the pond, Jane bent to pick up the withered petals and lifted them to her face. She squinted as if she didn't know what to do with them.

"This Seer of yours, has she told you what will happen?"

Jane blew on the petals, and then a delicate butterfly with iridescent orange-brown wings settled on her palm, near the wet flower. I expected the ruthless vampire to crush it with a rapid movement of her arm or kill it using her powers against the insect.

But she surprised me. Jane waved her arm and the butterfly flew away as the petals swirled to the ground.

"No, Irina hasn't." Jane's voice had a tentative quality, unlike her usual businesslike briskness. "Only that it has to do with the Quileutes, one of them specifically. Aro decided to nudge the situation in the right direction, as is his wont. It wouldn't be the first time he's done so."

Her words intrigued me. They clashed with my perception of the Volturi leader as ruthless; the man who'd ruled over the vampires for thousands of years. This train of thought led me to Carlisle's intriguing words about the Prussian diplomat that disappeared two hundred years ago. Could it be that the Volturi might help me get more information with all their accumulated knowledge?

I sought the correct way to phrase my question without making Jane suspicious. Finally I settled on the obvious choice.

"Carlisle's told me something interesting that happened when he was in Europe."

Jane lifted her eyebrows. In her mind there was a distinct fondness for my father, quite unlike her disdain for the other vampires that did not dwell at the Volturi court. "Carlisle should come back to us. Aro misses his sharp wit so much. What did he tell you?"

I sat down beside the pond. After Jane's revelatory words, I wasn't that worried that she would attack either Bella or Jacob so I let down my guard. If the Volturi needed me - if Aro had ordered it - Jane would not hurt me.

"It was around the Napoleonic wars, I don't recall the time. Carlisle told me he heard about a diplomat, I guess he was German? Anyway, he was staying at an inn. When he went to his carriage, several witnesses saw him walk around the horses-"

To my surprise, Jane put her hand on my shoulder; her touch was surprisingly gentle. "What happened then?"

"The man disappeared. He didn't reach the other side. The people at the inn watched that. Carlisle tells me this story circulated widely around that time. I just thought that, with all the knowledge the Volturi have acquired in their dealings with the mortal world, you'd be able to explain this puzzling incident." My fingers grazed the tall stems of grass while Jane lifted her hand from my shoulder.

"Haven't heard of it in my time at court." Jane moved noiselessly to the other side of the pond, gazing at its dark surface while she remembered the dealings she'd had with Aro.

She lifted her gaze and looked at me. "I wouldn't be surprised if Aro was behind it though. He's always tried to change the mortals' perception about vampires. He can't deny our existence, but he's seen fit to shroud it in harmless legends that distract from our actual appearance and protect us."

"So you think that the Volturi were behind this?" I stood up and walked towards her. In her thoughts she appeared to be telling the truth.

"Edward, the foolish mortals saw this man disappear. I'm surprised you haven't realized the truth. You're quite smart after all; that and your power make you very valuable to us."

"And the truth is?" I stood beside her, gazing at the Quileute lands, wondering where Jacob was. I hoped the wolf wouldn't intrude on us at that moment. He would probably go berserk if he smelled Jane and would probably attack her.

"One of us must have grabbed the man you speak of." Jane spoke with certainty, proud in the abilities of the Volturi to affect the mortal world. "With a vampire's speed, they whisked him off that inn and the foolish mortals never even knew."

She smiled predatorily.

* * *

\--

Bella toyed with her cell phone, seemingly unsure if she should take up the call with me around. I put a hand on her shoulder, relishing her warmth through the cotton blouse she was wearing. "Go on, don't keep the guy waiting."

"How did you know it's a guy? Your vampire... thing?"Bella essayed a weak smile as she put her phone next to her ear, handling it a bit clumsily.

I shook my head while I walked to the window of her bedroom. The overcast sky over Forks shielded me from the revealing rays of the sun and I was grateful for that.

Bella chirped enthusiastically. "Hi, Nathan!"

What once would have sent sharp spikes of jealousy through my undead heart now filled me with reassurance. Bella would find love and happiness and she would be safe from the Volturi plots. At that moment I crafted a plan, to nudge Bella towards this guy and make her leave Forks so she wouldn't have to suffer through the confrontation with the Volturi and the fight Alice's vision told me about.

My keen sense of hearing picked up the other end of the conversation and I listened intently, seeking ways to further my goals.

"I'm sorry, Isabella. I have to return to Phoenix. Mom's gonna marry again and she wants me there."

"Oh, Nate. That's too bad! I hoped we'd spent more time together. You've become a good friend. It's nice to talk to someone who comes from my background, so to speak." Bella looked guiltily in my direction and I shot her a reassuring grin.

"Come with me, Isabella!"

"I can't, Nate. I have business here."

"Break up with your fiancé, Isa! He's never around."

Bella looked in my direction and then hurriedly broke up her call. "Talk to you later, Nate, kay? I'm… busy right now."

Bella put her cell phone on her pocket, shrugging guiltily. "It was Nathan, a friend of mine. He's leaving for Arizona."

I walked up to her. Touching gently her shoulders, I looked into her warm brown eyes. "Why don't you visit him for a while? I wouldn't mind."

"You wouldn't? But I thought you wanted to marry me and-"

I put my cold finger on her sculpted lips. "I've come to realize I was pressuring you, Bella. I feel like I'm trapping you in a relationship we're no longer comfortable with."

Bella crossed her arms, shivering. "What do you mean, Edward? I thought you wanted us to stay together for eternity."

I smiled at her, trying to hold this image forever. Her dark hair framed Bella's alabaster skin as she bit her lower lip, her dark jeans hugging her long legs and slim hips. It was time to free Bella, saving her from the horrors of a vampire's life; to protect her from the machinations of the Volturi and the impending confrontation. To save Bella from myself.

"We should take time off from each other." She started to protest but I rushed on. "We should see other people. Cool things off for a while."

I turned to look at the trees outside Chief Swan's house. "Go visit Phoenix, spend time with your childhood friends." I motioned towards the overcast sky. "Enjoy a place with sunshine! I won't mind, Bella."

Despite her protestations, Bella seized on the idea. "If you're sure? Nathan is a good friend and I want to take a breather from all the violence."

"Enjoy the summer, Bella. Meet other people, have fun! Maybe when you come back, we will be stronger than ever." Despite my words and the smile I sent her way, I knew things would never be the same with us. Bella would find love and happiness far away from me. It didn't bother me as much as it would have just a few days ago. Instead I had become intrigued by the wolf's plight, not to mention his handsome physique.

* * *

\--

I shifted gears, glancing casually at the GPS map on the dashboard of my Volvo. I was doing a leisurely and boring 40 mph down Bogachiel Way. I'd dropped off Bella at Seattle Airport. Now that she was going to Arizona, I felt strangely relieved.

I had browsed through the public library in Seattle, trying to find books about alternate realities but it was a chore. They were either coached on a language that was too scientific or they were plain confusing.

Glancing through the sci-fi shelf, I had picked up books at random, unknowing if they would be useful. After a while I left the building, dejected, feeling every season of my lonely hundred years.

The important thing was that Bella would be safe, away from the coming fight. I pondered if it was unfair to keep her unaware of Jacob's fate, keeping mum the fact that the Quileute probably would face the Volturi in Tuscany. But I felt it was better this way. Bella would try to save her best friend and doing this she would put all of us in even greater danger.

I glanced at the nearby copse of trees on the other side of Bogachiel and then a Volkswagen's klaxon disrupted my peace. I felt besieged by the angry thoughts of the wolf I knew well.

Smirking, I braked and parked the car in front of the entrance to Lupine Avenue. I glanced at the rearview mirror as Jacob's tidy red Rabbit stopped behind me.

The gorgeous mutt stepped out of his car and walked towards me with a carelessly seductive stride. My eyes strayed to his bulging biceps and massive shoulders. I caressed the mutt's chiseled abs in my mind as my gaze glided down on its way to his tight black jeans. My mouth watered as I sneered at Jacob.

Jacob grabbed the edge of the window and barked at me, "What the fuck did you do with Bella, leech? If you break her heart again, I'll kill you!"

The wolf angered me with his stupid words. I felt like tearing his hand off my window. Jacob must have seen this in my face, for he took a step back as I growled at him. "Bella is safe. She's taking a time out from our relationship, visiting a friend in Phoenix!"

The wolf frowned, confusion uppermost in his thoughts. "You mean Bella left of her own-"

"Free will, yeah. Damn you, pup! You always have to think the worst of me!" I reclined my head upon the leather wheel, recalling the taunting revelations of Jane and Alice.

Jake put his hand on my shoulder. "Sorry, man! Bella called me from the airport and told me she was leaving, and since she was all bubbly about you a while back and now she left, I thought…"

"You thought wrong, damned mutt! For once in your life, it wouldn't hurt you if you meditated first." I turned on the ignition and prepared to drive away but Jake pleaded with me.

"I'm sorry, okay? Don't make me repeat it again, leech." Jake muttered, "I'm confused enough as it is."

I looked up at the russet-colored face I'd admired for a long time. Jake was frowning cutely and biting his lower lip. On the spur of the moment I decided to show him the meadow where I used to take Bella.

"Hop in!" I motioned towards the other door.

"Wait, you want me to go with you?"

"Are you deaf or what? Now get in."

Jake motioned to his car. "I can't leave Fridolf behind."

I laughed in disbelief. "You named your car that? Are you nuts?"

Jacob growled and kicked the door. "Says the one who sucks blood from bears!"

I snickered. "Touché! You can follow me, you and… Fridolf!" I laughed softly while Jacob blushed. I yearned to make him blush everywhere.

* * *

\--

"So that's why I sent Bella away after Jane came and told me about-"

"You should've told me!" Jacob was reclining against an oak, kicking the poor tall grass as if it came from the Volturi. He'd complained of the heat and taken off his t-shirt and his jeans, leaving him clad only in his briefs. Not that I was complaining, though it had been distracting to tell Jacob about Jane's visit without my gaze straying towards his bronzed chest and his crotch. He appeared to be well-hung.

In his mind, Jake continued his thought. _'…you could've been hurt, stupid leech!'_

"I assure you, Jake, that I'm perfectly able to fight Jane!"

Jacob blushed and stammered, "D… don't read my thoughts, damn invading leech! I have little privacy with the pack as it is!"

"Sorry, Jake. I'll try not to. Your thoughts are entertaining though."

"Whatever, man. So this new vampire, she's better at predicting the future than the pixie?"

"That's what Jane said. I understood that the future was like an onion, this woman could peel different layers, whereas Alice can only-"

Jake started laughing softly, and I growled. "Something funny, mutt?"

"Sorry, leech. You do sound funny sometimes, you know."

 _'And your pouty mouth is kissable.'_ Jake winked at me before he blushed, realizing his thoughts had betrayed him.

"To return to the urgent matters at hand." While I talked, the sun peeked from behind the cloud cover and a stray sunbeam fell on my bare arm and hand. "Bella found this guy, or she was friends with him, I don't recall exactly. They appeared to hit it off. He had to go to Phoenix and I suggested…"

I trailed off, enchanted by Jake's thoughts. _Edward looks so yummy, he seems like liquid diamonds. Makes me want to lick him all over, to taste his shiny arm, to trail kisses down to his cock._

I noted with surprise that Jake's briefs were tented and there was a wet spot. The scent of Jake's arousal clouded my senses. It was overwhelming, nothing at all like Bella's blood singing to me. It was more powerful.

She made me want to bite her and drink her blood. Jake made me want to pound him into the soil. As the smell grew so did my mind cloud until I could barely think, submerged in a haze of lust.

Jake looked up at me. "What's happening, man?"

"I want you, Jake. I want to own you, to possess you. Will you let me?"

"What the fuck you talking about, leech?" said Jacob, but his mind betrayed him. _'God, he looks so sexy, never wanted anything so much as to have him fuck me, mount me.'_

Having his implicit permission, I took off my clothes with my inhuman speed. Jake's gaze strayed to my cock, proudly erect and leaking. His mouth watering, the wolf hesitated for a second and then took off his briefs.

Jake spread his legs wantonly, lost in his own fantasy of being dominated and being loved to bits.

I forgot about the impending danger, but I paused when Jacob moaned. "What are you waiting for?"

"I need some lube." My voice came out grating, harsh, unlike my usual smooth tenor.

"The car, I've got some grease."

"Where?"

Jake said hoarsely. "Dashboard."

I ran naked towards the sturdy red Rabbit, yanking open the door and blindly grabbing the lube. I was in a hurry, I wanted to possess Jacob as much as he wanted me to fuck him.

I strolled back, delighting in Jacob's darkened gaze and the deep blush that covered his chest. Most of all, enjoying his thoughts. _God, Edward's hung. That cock, I wanna eat it!_

Jacob sat on his haunches, his thick cock jutting proudly from his dark bush. He turned and knelt on all fours, presenting his backside to me. "Come on! Don't have all day!"

I chuckled as I opened the tube and poured grease on my fingers. I prodded his entrance and my fingers entered him slowly, teasingly. One, two, three fingers. Scissoring, finding his prostate, massaging it to the rhythm of his moans.

"Don't tease me, leech! Just fuck me!"

"Your wish is my command, pup."

I thrust slowly into his warm channel, mindful of my strength. His muscles clenched hungrily around my cock and he pushed back until I was sheathed mid-shaft on his needy body.

"Come on! I won't break, sissy bloodsucker!"

"Who you're calling sissy, Jake?"I thrust viciously into his greedy hole, retreating until only my cockhead was stuck on the lips of his entrance, delighting in his grunts and moans.

"More, faster."

I obliged my mutt by plowing his tender backside with short thrusts, rolling my hips as I sought to massage his prostate from the inside. I saw Jake grab his cock with his sweaty hands. I slapped his paw aside and took his prick, unsheathing his cockhead and rolling my thumb on his glans.

_'Gawd! That cold hand feels great.'_

It took only a minute of pounding Jake from the inside and fisting his cock until he came with a howl, his seed falling on the grass below us.

Overwhelmed by the squeezing heat surrounding my cock, I came a few seconds later.

Jake was trembling and shaking as I slipped out of him. We lay side by side on the meadow; he was dark as the finest bronze, making a fine contrast with my white skin under the now overcast sky.

Jake ruffled my hair. "You're a good lover, Edward. I'm glad Bella's gone and she's safe. She doesn't know what she is missing."

 

 

 


	3. The ancient vampire

* * *

**JPOV**

I ran through the woods, shaking my head. What the fuck was I thinking, letting the leech do what he wanted with me?

I raised my eyes to the cloudy sky, howling as my shackles stood up. Looking back, I saw the copse of trees I had just run through. There was no green. The blue and red of the flowers? Forget it. Damned black and white wolf vision!

I put my muzzle near the ground, inhaling sharply. The scent of home was southward, I smelled Quil and Embry. They were near the Rez.

After I let Edward make love to me I had dozed off for a while. When I came to, the fucking leech was gone!

I raised my paw and sniffed it intently. Nothing changed. There was no scent indicating that I was in heat or something. So how come I'd become so docile, so submissive?

Ok, I admitted to myself I found Cullen very attractive. I had ever since he started going out with Bella. Part of my frustration with the pair was the little, tiny fact that I liked them both.

Bella appealed to my macho sense; the wolf's need to have someone to protect and cherish, to find a mate he could spend the rest of his life with. Bella was so clumsy, innocent and frail that it made my inner wolf clench its jaws and snarl in frustration that she wouldn't allow me to care for her. That she always preferred the leech.

And Edward? There was no need to protect him. Hell, I was sure he could take me on and win easily. I shook my head and snarled at the cedars and yews just in front of me.

The wolf's instincts pulled me to the trees. Out here in the open I was vulnerable. The trees would provide cover, shield me from other predators.

I trotted in an easy gait. Stopping to scratch my fur against the nearest yew, I grunted contentedly. The scent of prey tickled my nose as I sat on my haunches. It was a rabbit my inner wolf yearned to hunt and prey upon.

But the laws of my people forbade it. I wasn't hungry, having eaten three burgers an hour before. We Quileutes were supposed to be the stewards of the land. The animals and trees, they weren't there simply so we could dispose of them. They were ours to use and protect.

I clenched my jaws, willing the wolf to forget about the rabbit. I found it hard, this constant wrestling with the instincts of the predator that sought only to hunt, driven by needs simpler than mine. Looking up at the clouded sky, I envied Edward his coolness. Because he did not have an animal inside, he had more self-control than me.

This need to subdue my wild side was one of the reasons I loved tinkering with cars. Hefting a wrench, trying to puzzle out what was wrong; what part connected in which way to another called up the calm, cool part of my mind. Something analytical I guessed.

Probably the leech knew the fancy words to express my thoughts more elegantly but I didn't care. It felt cool, opening the hood and looking at the motor, knowing that I was the master of this domain. It helped me realize I was still a man despite the wolf inside.

This brought me to the issue I was wrestling with. Granted, I found Edward attractive and had wanted to make love to him for a while. Hearing that Bella was safely out of Forks and our lives made me sad. I'd realized it was the sadness of parting with my best friend. Nothing less, nothing more.

I felt happy that she was protected from the perils that lurked in Forks. However, if I was honest with myself, I would have to admit that a part of me rejoiced that I would have Edward's undivided attention. Though it evaded my grasp how that led to me to begging him to fuck me.

I swished my tail nervously, inhaling deeply. There were no strange scents anywhere. I was not in heat, that I was sure of. So what in hell drove me to behave so strangely?

_Jake, where are you? I found someone here_. My fur stood on end, hearing Seth. The kid seemed very troubled. In his mind I could see he was looking at a ravine, growling.

_Seth, stay away from them! I'm coming right over! You're on the other side of the river from me, right?_

_Jake, I'm… I guess three miles from First Beach. You know the rock where Quil hurt himself the other day? It's right in front of me._

_Stay put, kid!_ I trotted east, easily evading the brambles though some thorns stuck in my fur.

_I'm not a kid!_ Despite being wary, Seth didn't appear fazed. The silly kid didn't have enough sense to stay away from danger. He was like a pup. Curious, always rushing towards danger. If something happened to him and Leah knew I was nearby, she would tear me to pieces. Not that she would have to, I'd do it myself. Seth called up something in me, a need to protect him as if he was future counsel, my beta.

I shook my muzzle to stop thinking such strange things as I forded the Quillayute. Its waters felt cool against my heated fur. As always, the river embraced me like an old friend. I grinned feeling its caress if only for a moment.

_Stay away! Or I´ll kill you!_ growled Seth. What seemed like snarling to normal humans felt in my mind like the normal words of my pack. I speeded up my galloping, leaping over a giant boulder that stood in my way.

_Take that!_ I grunted at the rock, rolling my eyes. What could I say? Sometimes us wolves weren't very rational.

_What's goin' on, man?_ Quil's mental voice sounded irreverent, just like my best friend. I turned my head and saw him on the other side of the river. The brown fur of his muzzle moved as he grinned, his eyes shining with malice.

_Seth needs us, on the other side!_ I pounded the ground on my haste to reach Seth.

I jumped when I smelled the awful stench that could only come from the undead. It drove the wolf in me crazy. I couldn't stand that scent, with the exception of Edward.

I landed next to the rangy form of Seth, jostling a boulder that tumbled down to the man who was standing downslope.

The man evaded the rock with usual vampire speed. I snarled at the leech who was strangely dressed. He had a frumpy coat with lace sleeves. Shaking my head, I thought the vampire must have come from a carnival. Who dressed like that nowadays? The thin, dark-haired man looked like an extra from the set of _Amadeus_ , the movie Embry's mother was watching last time I visited their home.

I sniffed deeply, sensing something strange about the man's stench. It smelled even more sickly than usual, if that was possible. The leech wobbled. In that moment he resembled the drunken man I saw the other day in the Rez. Thankfully my dad wasn't ever like that. Even in a wheelchair he was always the wise elder.

The earth shook when Quil landed on an outcrop just behind me as more boulders fell down the ravine. This time the man couldn't evade them so easily. My friend growled and I turned to look at Quil. His hackles were raised and he appeared ready to jump.

_Wait, Quil!_ I growled. _The leech is sick!_

_What the fuck do I care? He's a bloodsucker and he's in our land. He deserves to die!_

Quil took a step forward, crouching. He was ready to jump on the bloodsucker. Despite my inborn fear and loathing of the creatures I felt we needed to see why this leech was so sick. Maybe it was a disease that could affect Edward?

At any rate I had to prevent Quil from killing the man. Judging from the vamp's weakness and my friend's awful mood, I was sure that the wolf would be easily victorious this time.

_No, Quil!_

_You're no Alpha, don't give me orders!_

Quil jumped over the rock as I, desperate to learn what ailed the vamp, shouted mentally using every ounce of desperation and persuasion I could gather. _FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, DON'T, QUIL!_

My stubborn friend stopped his jump in midair and fell to the ground. Twisting sideways, Quil seemed about to fall down the ravine. Splaying my four legs and jerking forward, I held the scruff of his neck with my jaws, pulling him back while I shot daggers at him.

_Aw, man! That was awesome!_ Seth intruded in our thoughts. The kid was trembling with excitement. At that moment I felt particularly tired of living as a shapeshifter and having to deal with my packmates' every mood, from foul to crazy. I felt angry.

_Shut up!_ I roared at Seth. The sandy wolf shivered. Taking several steps back, his tail close to his legs as he lowered his head, he turned sideways to present his neck in the wolf form of submission.

Seeing this, I felt ashamed of myself. After all, Seth was just a kid and Quil? He was as light-feathered as his name. In fact it was one of the reasons I enjoyed his and Embry's company. They both managed to lift me out of my bad moods with their bantering and awful jokes. Even when things looked really bad with Bella; when I started desiring Cullen instead of her.

My best friends had stood by me and I felt awful because I lost my temper. My mental processes must have leaked somewhat because Seth suddenly sat on his hind legs, his tongue lolling as he grinned wolfishly. _No trouble, Jake! Leah is worse when I don't clean my room!_

Quil crawled up the rest of the way and squinted, his muzzle facing the strange vamp. _Thanks for the save, Jake! Leastways you're as strong as Sam!_

_Don't mention it, Quil!_

_Jake…_

Quil shook his head tentatively, leaning forwards to smell the air. I expected he would comment on the vamp's sickly scent, but instead he went on a tangent as he liked to do.

_Your command, it hit me as strongly as Sam's. I think you just gave your first Alpha order!_

I narrowed my eyes. Talk about distracting me from the issue at hand! _Later, Quil, later!_

The leech appeared ready to tumble down the ravine. I needed to get information from him and I couldn't communicate in my present form. Feeling oddly prudish, I took a step back from the edge of the ravine and shifted.

It was strange. Just a few hours ago I was this horny, uninhibited guy who begged to be mounted and now I shied away from a leech seeing me naked!

I reached down to grab my cutoff jeans, untying them from my ankle as Seth and Quil stood guard beside me. It felt good to have the company of my pack.

With a shudder, I realized that in all the commotion about the vamp, they hadn't had time to delve in my thoughts and find out about my involvement with Edward. How would they react to the news? I pondered this while I closed the zipper, not before making sure it wouldn't get stuck in my pubes. It had happened before.

Once I'd finished, I climbed down from the rock, stopping about five feet above the man. Seth growled, licking his lips. Quil just stared at the leech.

"What are you doing here?" I crossed my arms, ready to shift instantly if the man should prove dangerous.

The bloodsucker lifted his arms. I supposed he meant to indicate he posed no danger but the movement unsteadied him. "I bear you no ill will, young gentlemen."

Quil snickered. Even in his wolf form I could tell what he was thinking. He was struck by the same thing I was, the stranger's odd speech pattern.

I spread my arms to indicate the vast woods all around us. "You're intruding on our territory, bloodsucker. No vampires are allowed in the Quileute lands!"

The man bowed, looking very ridiculous. Yet there was a certain grace to his movements as happened with all his kind.

Once he stood upright, he squinted at us. "By the Holy Name of God! You look like those natives of the New World!"

By now the man's helplessness was apparent. I stepped closer, grunting as I crossed my arms. "Sure, sure. We're in America, leech!"

"I do think you speak sooth to me." The guy looked around carefully, staring at the trees and the Quillayute River below. "Those kinds of trees and the river. It's different from what I have observed in the Continent."

Quil howled behind me, reminding me of our duty to our tribe and the land.

"You haven't answered my question, leech!" I enunciated the next words slowly, just in case the bloodsucker suffered from some kind of dementia or something. "What are you doing here?"

The guy climbed atop the ravine. I took several steps back, motioning with my hands to my friends so they would understand it was all right. I expected more growling and resistance but Quil and Seth remained silent.

Nonetheless I walked towards the trees, keeping a safe 10 feet between the man and me. It wouldn't be hard for the guy to reach me using his vampire powers, but I was sure of the protection of my packmates.

Strangely, the leech seemed very tired once he finished the climb. In a wheezy voice - like Harry Clearwater when he was sick - the man said, "I was on an errand from the court. I was on the outskirts of Bologna."

I held up my hand to stop him. "Wait. The leader of the vampires sent you? What's your name?"

Bella had told me about her encounter with the honcho bloodsucker and the other ones, called Marcus and Caius. She had gone on and on about all the members of the leech court Edward told her about. I wanted to find out if this guy was one of them.

"I'm Fedor Sergeyevich Volturi. Indeed Aro sent me, young man. He wanted to stamp out the coven that threatened to destroy our way of life. They thought that given the circumstances, they could devour humans as they wanted before the Austrians attacked…"

I shook my head; this man was confusing me even more than I was just a while ago. "The Austrians are at war with Bologna?"

"They want to stop the independence of their domains in the Italian peninsula before Garibaldi…"

"Stop, man! You're crazy." I growled at the leech. Did he think I was some clown? The history teacher at the Rez had told us about the independence movement in Italy; she came from an Italian family that had moved to Forks from the Bronx.

"Garibaldi died more than a hundred years ago, we're in the twenty-first century!"

The man shook his head sadly. "Then Ludmilla was right! Marcus had her destroyed for her blasphemy, but her oracular powers must be true! I hope my Irina stays safe from the wrath of the triumvirate!"

The man started to sit down. It seemed he had reached the limit of his strength. I heard the sound of his bones when he moved. It was a bit similar to the sound I made when I cracked my knuckles or when dad spent too much time without shifting in his wheelchair. Only this sounded worse, it was like he was breaking inside.

The man wheezed. "Ludmilla uttered a prophecy, gentlemen."

That guy, Fedor, looked at Seth and Quil. "Judging from the company you keep, you must be the people she foretold."

"What did this Ludmilla say?"

The man had a haunted look about him. If what this woman had told him concerned us, I wanted to know so I could tell Sam and the elders and we could take the corresponding precautions.

The guy answered, his voice weakening as he went on. "She said that the future of our kind, indeed the future of all mankind would be resolved by people from the other side of the ocean, the Forgotten Ones. They who can travel between realms, they for whom time holds no mysteries."

Fedor coughed, lying down on the earth as he smiled weakly. "I fear my time is growing short, young man. What did you say your name was?"

Before I could answer, he waved his hand. "It is of no import. Everything is for nought; Aro won't be able to prevent this. Our kind cannot, for even if we hold these incredible powers we are bound to the world. We cannot escape the shackles of this earth."

He gazed intently at me with eyes that slowly turned cloudy. "But you can, wolf. You can travel between realms. It is you…. who…. will save us…"

Fedor stopped. I was alarmed to note that he was becoming grey. I leaned down to touch his wrist, to check if he had a pulse.

I fumbled, trying to reach the skin through the lace wrist cuff. Quil's snickering reminded me that it was useless. The man was a vampire for Christ's sake! He had no pulse, being dead already.

Still, I realized the kind of life this man lived had come to an end. When I tried to lift his hand, I couldn't. The man's skin - muscles and everything - they had become as hard as a rock.

What kind of disease would be devastating enough to kill a vampire?

I wanted to find out if there was an epidemic or a strange weapon that could kill them for I didn't want to lose my Edward, not when I had just found him.

* * *

\--

On the way home, we ran like fiends. There was something exhilarating about being able to burn off energy this way. It made up for all the shortcomings I'd endured ever since I became a wolf; the short temper, the need to lash out and snarl at people, me who had always kept a cool head on my shoulders.

I wondered if being a wolf was messing with my sex life. Was that the reason I had become so fucking submissive to Edward? After all I was the guy who was supposed to become the Alpha of the pack.

If ever I decided to be a leader - if Sam should prove too obnoxious and I challenged him - how would the members of the pack react, seeing me begging to be fucked?

_Don't worry, Jake. I'll stand by you._ Seth's mental voice showed purpose and loyalty, the perfect qualities of a beta, at least according to Sam. I shook my head, ashamed that I'd forgotten I was in wolf form and the pack members could read my mind.

_So you like it up the ass? No problem, man! Embry found this old mag that said boys experime…_

_Shut up!_ I growled at Quil. Even though I appreciated his support, Quil's lack of tact was rattling, especially when it came to this sensitive matter.

_I have no problem with it, Jake. I mean, I'll still respect you… I think._

Seth piped up. _Shut up, Quil! Can't you see you're disturbing Jake?_

_You shut up, kid! Don't have to put up with you!_

_BOTH OF YOU, SILENT NOW!_ I was getting irritated with the two wolves. I swerved to the right of a big boulder and stopped, sniffing the air.

The moon was hid by a big oak. It was a crescent moon. Lately I'd been so involved in Bella's problems with the leech, and fighting my growing attraction to Edward, to notice much the moon, my favorite object in the sky.

This was silly considering I was a wolf. Didn't all the movies Quil, Embry and I watched through the years say it was the moon that governed when a person became a slavering werewolf?

Turned out it wasn't. At least in our tribe. Maybe the moon affected werewolves in other parts of the Earth but I didn't care. We had enough trouble patrolling the land, guarding the people against leeches to care much for the rest of the world.

I had too much trouble wrestling with my inner wolf and the hormones which made me yearn for Bella and then Edward. Thinking about the vampire pounding me, driving deep into me and tickling that spot inside me that made me see stars had me sprouting a boner.

I heard whining behind me; turning to face my pack mates I found that Seth and Quil pawed the ground restlessly.

_What's the matter, guys?_

They started to run towards me, but stopped.

Exasperated, I roared. _SPEAK UP! CAT GOT YOUR WOLF TONGUES?_

Seth sounded worried. _Jake, I swear I couldn't speak. Felt as if…_

_Bro, lay low with the orders, will ya?_ Quil grinned, unashamedly interrupting Seth.

_Wait, so you couldn't speak?_

They both nodded. Reviewing my words in the last minutes, I realized I'd unconsciously given them orders. I felt embarrassed, given the fact that I hated it when Sam imposed his will on the pack. I loathed it when Bella said something and then expected me to obey her as if it was the most understandable thing in the world, even if I disagreed with her. I detested Edward's demanding tone, except when it suited the submissive part of me.

In short, I hated when people imposed their will. And I had done it to my mates, my friends.

_I'm sorry, guys!_ I bowed my head to them in token submission. _I wasn't thinking. You know how I hate it when Sam…_

… _orders us around._ Quil nudged my shoulders with his head while Seth's tongue licked my muzzle.

_Don't worry, Jake. I understand it must be new to you. Frankly, Leah is worse._ Seth took a step back and sat on his haunches, lolling his tongue. Just like a rangy dog I once had. I shook my head to dislodge the memory. Shouldn't be thinking of Seth as a puppy when he could throw a deadly vampire around as if he was a puppet.

_Anyway, guys… I order you to disregard any future orders of mine._

Quil cocked his head, his chocolate-colored muzzle wrinkling in confusion. _Don't think it works that way, Jake._

_Sure, man._ Seth nodded his assent. _What if two mean vampires attack us and you have to order us around? We'd be conflicted between the orders, wouldn't move and then the vampires pounce and kill us and…_

_Hey, hey. I got you, Seth! Disregard that order._

Quil quipped, _You'll just have to deal with the weight of pushing us down, oppressing us. Like the dictators we saw on the TV…_

_Hey, you. Lay off Jake!_ growled Seth.

_Kiddo, I'm just pulling his leg. Maybe he'll feel guilty and help me with my math homework._ Quil grinned.

I rolled my eyes. _You two are gonna be the death of me! Come on, let's go home! I want to talk to dad about what the vampire said._

* * *

oOoOo

I walked to my house, turning back to wave goodbye to Quil and Seth. Opening the door, I heard the rickety wheels of dad's chair. They needed oiling. I made the mental note to grab the oil can I used to lubricate things around the house and do a thorough workover of his chair. What if the wheels got stuck and dad fell?

It was a habit I had. Looking critically at things around the house and measuring how dangerous they could be to Billy if they fell or got in his way. Putting the things he needed at the correct height and distance so dad could reach them easily. When I looked at the shelf over the TV, I made the mental note to put the invoices there.

I grinned; with all those mental notes I doubted I would remember them all. I needed to write them for real.

Before I remembered that dad had gone to watch TV at Charlie's I called out, "Dad, I'm home!"

I went to the kitchen to fix dinner. After I took out the meat from the fridge I frowned at it, wondering if it was lean enough. I'd read all about fat meat in the web. Weighing the information against the need to keep dad well fed with enough protein, I decided to cook it. Fish was just too pricey for us.

I took out mom's stainless-steel pressure cooker that still functioned after all these years. I took out some potatoes from the cabinet, along with zucchini and carrots from the fridge. While I cut them I reflected about the strange vampire that just popped out of nowhere and croaked dead. From the way Fedor spoke and what he said, obviously he came from the past. How could that be?

I believed in the magic all around us because I knew vampires existed and I was a shifter, but time travel? Come on!

After lightly cooking the meat on the pressure cooker with as little vegetable oil as I could manage, I poured the cut vegetables and enough water, grabbing some spices at random. I wasn't the best cook in the world but as long as I managed to feed myself and dad, I didn't care.

I closed the lid of the pressure cooker and proceeded to the rice. It was good for Billy's health. It wasn't wild rice or something costly, just plain white rice, as pale as Edward's skin when he made love to me.

Blushing, I sautéed the onion and garlic, afterwards frying the rice till it browned a little.

I loved cooking; it was like fixing a car. It required my concentration, and handling utensils I felt like a thinking being, not a wolf that is bound only by instinct.

Finally I poured some water on the rice and the rest of the vegetables I'd saved. Easy as rain. Unfortunately the food would last only two days.

It wasn't that Billy ate it all. He was too thin for that. Most of the time I was very hungry. I tried to eat burgers in town to save the nutritious fare for dad but when I was home the wolf's appetite often won.

I heard the sound of Chief Swan's car outside the house. Wiping my hands on the towel, I checked that the rice had enough water and turned down the flame under the pressure cooker before I left the kitchen.

I found Billy wheeling his chair towards the sofa.

Suddenly I felt very nervous. It wasn't just the dead vamp, after all, Billy was an elder. He knew the legends inside and out. It was that I would have to tell him about Edward. The two of us didn't keep secrets from each other. Frankly I was worried about his reaction.

"Son, what's troubling you?" Dad took a can from the table and began to sip it while I glared at him. He knew that I didn't like him drinking soda, it was unhealthy.

Squaring my shoulders, I decided to begin with the hard part. "Dad, you know Bella left town?"

"Yes, Jacob. To be truthful, I'm pleased she did and more pleased that you're taking it so well. I was worried that you would fall into a depression when she left. Charlie told me how she used to stay in bed and just stare at the walls when her boyfriend left her." Dad pointed the cola can at me. "I was worried you'd do the same."

I shrugged. "You don't have to worry about that anymore, dad. In fact I have become involved with…"

"Don't tell me! Leah?" Billy shuddered and I did the same thinking about making out with the angry girl.

"No, dad. It isn't her. In fact, it isn't any _her_."

"What do you mean, Jake?"

"I'm seeing a man." I blurted out the next part, which I was sure would make him mad. "In fact he's a Cullen. Edward Cullen."

Billy took a deep breath and I nearly hit myself on the head. What the fuck was I thinking, putting such pressure on dad? What if it affected his health? I felt I was just what Edward liked to call me back when we fought over Bella, an unthinking mutt.

However, Billy's words surprised me. "I don't know how the council will take this, Jacob. But of course I support you."

"You aren't ashamed of-"

"-you? Never, son. You're Ephraim's descendant, the rightful Alpha of the pack. And you're my son. Whom you see should be no one's concern but yours."

I breathed out a sigh of relief. Trust dad to always protect me, I felt proud to be his son.

"But that isn't all that troubles you, son."

I sat on the couch next to his wheelchair and steepled my fingers. "Dad, when I was coming home, I saw a vampire in our lands."

"The Cullens broke the truce? I'm afraid that bodes ill for your relationship, Jacob."

I waved my arm. "Wasn't one of them. It was a new one. Dad, I'm not worried about a leech on our lands. The pack would take care of them, what gives me the creeps is that the leech died!"

"What do you mean, exactly?" Billy rolled the wheels nervously back and forth, a habit he had when he was meditating.

"The man just became hard as a stone! It was weird, dad. And he talked like he came from the past; dressed like it, too."

"Did he say something special? Jacob, it isn't like you to be so concerned about a vampire." He held up his hand. "Unless it is one of the Cullens. You've always been passionate about them. Hating them and now, it seems, going out with one of them."

"He said something about a vision. He thought he was in Europe. When he realized he was here, he said Natives were in that vision."

Billy sat back on the chair. He looked towards the door as if silently seeking permission from the other members of the council. "The time has come to tell you about your future, Jake. The vampires that came into Forks, your Cullens? They are not the only reason the pack was formed, other circumstances forced you to become a Shifter."

Billy sniffed. "What's that smell? Seems like something's burning."

"Shit! The rice! Be right back, dad." I rushed to the kitchen. I'd forgotten about the damned rice!

 

 


	4. The legend

 

 

I swiped the bowl with a rolled piece of bread. I'd cooked a fine meal, if I said so myself. Pity I didn't pay attention to the rice and it burned. The awful smell pervaded the house. I'd opened all windows for a while but even the breeze wouldn't get rid of the stench.

I wondered what dad was going to say about my future. I'd tried to cajole the information out of him but he insisted we should eat first.

"Jacob, can you fix me a cup of coffee?" Dad rolled the wheelchair towards the couch, turning to look at me.

"Fine, but no sugar."

In the kitchen, I fiddled with the pan and turned on the flame. "Dad, what were you going to say?"

"The coffee first, Jacob."

Grumbling, I shuffled my shoes on the floor. I was edgy. The tensions of the last few days seemed to be mounting. First Bella left, then I hooked up with Edward. And today the strange words of the vampire that turned to stone.

I missed her. Even if Bella did play with my heart, there was an easy friendship between us. I could tell her stuff I wouldn't tell Billy.

On the other hand, Edward was a fresh experience. I was a bit nervous around him. Between the moments when I remembered our fights and wanting to jump his bones I was distracted. There was little time to talk.

As I poured the water on the cup and grabbed the Nescafe, I resolved I would speak more freely with Edward. I would confide in him, make him my best friend. Perhaps the sex would make that easier? Since we'd already done the deed, there was no need to dance around the subject of our lust.

I went to the couch and put the cup of fresh coffee in front of Billy.

He took it gingerly, inhaling deeply as if to forget the burned rice. "Smells nice, son. Different, like the woods after a heavy rain."

I sat down, drumming my fingers against the tattered fabric of the couch. I wished I'd made a cup for myself but I was afraid it would make me even more jumpy.

"I remember way back when, running freely in the woods. I wanted so much to be able to shift and become a powerful wolf." Dad's voice was smooth, with a trace of longing.

Sighing, I noticed dad cradling his cup carefully. It was hard to imagine Billy as a young guy. So much had happened that I was unaware of.

"The moon was always there. Sometimes big as a pregnant wife, other nights slim like a slice of lemon. She reminded me of what I hadn't achieved." My dad grinned lopsidedly. "I felt unfulfilled until I met your mother. Then you were born and when I held you in my arms, I finally gave up the idea that I needed to shift."

Billy smiled at me, taking a sip. He put the cup on the table and leaned towards me.

"The moon has always been there for the Quileutes. She never stays the same. Always shifting, like you, Jacob. Tell me, have you thought about what happens when you change into a wolf?" Billy smiled wistfully at me, waiting for my answer.

"I haven't, dad. At first I was angry I'd become a wolf, that my freedom to do as I wanted had been taken from me. Then I was mooning over Bella and now-"

"You have your vampire to think about." Billy nodded sagely. "I understand, Jacob. Perhaps I should've told you sooner, but I wanted to protect you."

"From what?"

My dad said somberly, "From your future."

Steepling his fingers under his chin, he seemed to be lost in thought until a bird chirping on the back yard startled him. Looking at me, he frowned.

"When you change, Jacob, a part of the world shifts with you." He waved his hands at the old TV. "I'm not one of those scientists with long white coats but I do know that your wolf is quite bigger than you. Where do you think the extra muscle comes from?"

He took the cup and sipped contentedly while he waited for my answer.

I said tentatively, "From the air?"

"No, Jacob. It comes from all around you. The earth, the air, even the light and wind change a bit when a Quileute shifts." He leaned across the table and whispered, "You see? The world changes too, like the moon."

I stood up and started pacing. Dad's words were intriguing but I didn't see what they had to do with my future. "You mean the world is not constant?"

Dad didn't answer directly. "Our oldest legend, passed down from father to son since the Alpha Shifter appeared, tells the tale of the First. It is said that he could shift between here and the spiritual world. No one really knows what happened to the original Alpha. One day he simply disappeared, leaving the tribe in disarray."

"So?"

"Don't you see, son?" Billy's voice grew deeper, the longer he explained. "The Blacks are always the Alpha for a reason. Sue Clearwater told me a story her grandmother kept secret until she was dying in the hospital."

Dad spread his arms, encompassing the room. "It is said that one day the world will grow weary and weak. It will be angry with men and will want to wipe them out. The Third Wife-"

I pricked up my ears. Ever since I was a kid I'd wanted to learn more about that. But the elders always shut up when they reached that part and smiled enigmatically at us. It pissed me off something good.

Noticing my eagerness, Billy hastened to continue. "She had a vision before she sacrificed herself for her man. She saw a special Moon. Bright and beautiful hung she in the sky. All was well, it seemed. The moon glowed brightly over our land. Later the Third Wife called it the 'hallowed moon.' So sacred seemed the moment to her."

I felt warm inside, hearing dad's words. I loved listening to the history of our tribe. It gave me something to be proud of. I didn't have Edward's money or looks and Bella proved tricky to win, but I could always rely on the history of our people. Their hard lives, their successes and failures - they were mine too.

I was yanked from that warmth when dad continued. "But in her vision, she saw the moon break up. It glimmered and waned suddenly, pieces flying out of her like broken pottery. Just before the Third Wife's vision ended, she saw the woods around her change. The trees started disappearing. They rippled and then faded. The river stopped running, its water turning bright as diamond, the shards finally flying into the air and vanishing."

Listening to dad's solemn words, I felt as if I was there, watching this unraveling of the world. For a second I thought I'd gotten some of Edward's powers. Shaking my head, I returned to the reality of our living room.

"What happened next?"

"The Third Wife told this story to her beloved niece, the awkward girl who would marry Ephraim's son. When Sue told it to me, I was as worried as you seem to be." Dad gulped the last of the coffee and put the cup back on the table with trembling fingers.

"The Wife saw a big wolf in the middle of the forest. Just before the last of the trees vanished, the wolf shifted. She knew then it wasn't a wolf but one of our tribe. Instead of the wolf, there was a boy. He spread his arms and said words that the Wife couldn't understand. But the last tree didn't fade away; it remained there, just as lonely as the boy. Her vision ended at that moment."

* * *

\--

As I ran through the woods my head was a mess. The ash trees, the yews and pines, they all seemed to be clamoring for my protection. On top of all I was going through, I was supposed to save the world? It was too much for a shapeshifter, even me.

All I'd wanted was to have a nice girlfriend, find a job and have a family. Then Bella showed up and I yearned for her to be mine. Inside my head, I had tried to deny that I wanted a hard male body to rut against.

Enter Edward. He drove me crazy. Many times I'd been confused because I wanted to hit him, and then kiss his smirk away.

Vampires, shapeshifters. Bella leaving, me and Edward getting together. Now this legend stuff?

Snarling at the copse of trees I was passing through, I wanted to bite the bark of the nearest cedar. Wanted to tear a chunk off of it in frustration. Fortunately the shifting thing explained my bottoming for Edward. At least not everything had to do with saving the world!

When I'd confided my doubts to dad, about being the bottom and possible Alpha, he didn't understand at first. He thought I was talking about kissing!

Shaking my muzzle, I wondered how I got through that conversation. Having had that talk with dad, I knew nothing I would ever say to him could be that hard. When he finally got it, dad waved aside my concerns explaining that it had to do with the nature of a shapeshifter.

It was why he wasn't so worried about my being gay. Shapeshifting included the mind as well as the body. He said it was a mental state. In a true Alpha, all possibilities were open. The Alpha had to grasp the world as it was and as it _might_ be. He or she needed the ability to see things in a different way. To walk to the beat of a different drum, as my poetic dad said.

So he brushed aside my concerns about bottoming without knowing exactly what I was talking about, thank God!

Thinking about sexual positions distracted me from the worrying future. I kept imagining what Edward would feel like if I sunk my cock into that delectable ass. Would it feel hard as rock or soft as Ed's eyelashes? What about his come? I hadn't felt anything different when he fucked me, just sore. Could it be that Edward's body shifted a bit, like mine?

If so, maybe I could use his help to save the world.

God, I was starting to think like a comic book hero! I needed a reality check, fast. Trouble was, Bella was far away.

Goddamn it, I needed her!

I wondered if she was fine. Would she have trouble in Phoenix? What if she stumbled and twisted her ankle or something? At least here she was safe from the worst accidents; she had Edward and me to watch over her.

I stopped near a tall pine. Feeling an itch on my shanks, I scratched my fur against the rough bark, grunting in relief.

Who was I kidding? Bella wasn't safer here. She was in constant mortal danger from the vamps that popped up like vermin, including that funnily dressed guy from the Renaissance or whenever.

Smelling the scent I associated with Edward, my shackles rose. Sure enough, a twig crumbling to my left alerted me to the presence of the leech.

"What guy from the Renaissance? What did you see, Jake?" Edward sauntered towards me; his black boots scraping against the thick loam, his hands stuck in the back pockets of his sinfully tight pants.

I cocked my head, trying to dispel the notions that rushed to my head and groin _. 'Turn your back, Edward, I'm going to shift.'_

The damned vampire smirked. "Why so modest, mutt? I've seen all your glory and your well-endowed attributes. Speaking of which-"

 _'We have things to discuss, Cullen! I'm afraid we'll be distracted.'_ The vamp's sultry voice made me horny! And I had to save the goddamned world!

Frowning, Edward slowly turned, presenting his pert, fuckable ass. "As you wish, Jake. I can see you are worried." God, I swore I could hear his smirk!

I shifted and put on the shorts I'd tied to my ankle. I had difficulty closing the zipper, because the vamp's presence caused my cock to swell.

I sat down on the rich foam, leaning my back against the tree. "You can turn now, Edward."

He sat down beside me, his shoulder touching mine. His silk shirt felt smooth and cool against my skin.

"What about that guy, Jacob?"

"Quil, Embry and I? We were running and met this guy who was dressed like the ancients. He had a weird way of speaking. He fell and-"

"Wait a minute, Jake!" Edward put his cold hand against my thigh, caressing it softly. "You're confusing me. Concentrate on what happened and I'll read it in your thoughts, ok?" He took my hand, rubbing my wrist with his thumb.

For once, I was very glad my lover had this power to read minds. It came in awfully handy right then. I could transmit what had happened and he wouldn't be confused by my choice of words. I frowned, recalling the scene in the forest and concentrating on the man's words and his fluffy clothing.

Edward squeezed my hand painfully. He stopped that when I tried to yank it from him.

"So you met this vampire who claimed to come from the Volturi?" His tone of voice worried me, he was very serious. Turning to look at him, I saw he was worrying his lower lip.

"Do you know him? Was he one of the guys you met when you were there?"

"I haven't met this Fedor. If he comes from the past though, he wouldn't be in Volterra when I asked them to…" Edward's lips twisted in a grimace. "Dispose of me. He would've been thrown out of the present, unless it was an alternate reality."

"What do you mean, another reality?" This was getting out of control. I felt my heart beating faster. First dad told me the vision of the hallowed moon and now Edward comes up with this notion of alternate realities. What next?

Edward laid his head against my shoulder. When he looked up at me I felt his eyelashes fluttering against my chest. It was sensual and it distracted me from my problems. I realized a second later that was probably what my sneaky lover wanted, since he could probably hear my anxious heartbeat.

His breath cold against my nipple, Edward said, "You're right, pup. I can hear your heart. It soothes me. The other day I was talking with Carlisle. It was just after Alice told me she'd had a premonition."

"What about?"

"It was Bella moving from Forks, and…" Edward trailed off. I could feel him frowning.

"What else?"

"It was about you. She saw three versions of you. Like TV ghosts, she said."

"Ghosts?"

"In old TV models you often saw a blurry outline of the actors behind them. Kind of ghosts. This vision was before," Edward motioned towards me and him. "We got together. I talked with Carlisle about it. My father told me about the curious case of the man who walked around the horses."

I snorted in disbelief. Edward was weird. "So what? People walk around them all the time!"

"This was different, Jacob. It happened in Europe about two centuries ago, right during the Napoleonic wars. A British diplomat walked around his carriage in the yard of the Prussian inn he was staying at. He never reached the other side."

I snorted. "Probably he was drunk."

Edward shook his head. "There were witnesses. The circumstances were so strange that it became widely known. Carlisle heard the tale twenty years later, I guess. It even became a science fiction story."

I kissed his tousled bronze hair. "Geek!"

Edward sat up, brushing his black shirt. Then he leaned his head against my lap, smiling up at me. "What do you want me to do with the hours I don't sleep? I have to occupy my mind on something or I'll go crazy."

I caressed his pale cheek, frowning. "This guy disappeared in daylight, I suppose. So what?"

"It all ties in with Alice's premonition. She saw three different outcomes. Carlisle said it reminded him of the story. He thought there were different realms."

After a few seconds he said softly, "Alice's visions often don't come true, you know?"

"Sure, sure. You try to modify the results."

"Carlisle hinted that when we do, we create a different realm." He smiled at me and I drank in the sight of his amber eyes, full with mischief. "He never ceases to surprise me."

He took out his cell phone and caressed it. Looking up at me, he said, "Carlisle treated Professor Stephen Hawking once, when he visited England. You've heard about him?"

I shrugged. "The physics teach mentioned him once."

"Anyway, Carlisle sent him a document with the things that have happened, edited of course."

"Of course." God, Edward was turning out to be such a geek! I swore if he took out a poem book, I'd flung it into the forest.

The vamp scowled at me. "Don't worry, mutt. I have no time for poems right now."

I smirked at him. "Good! So what happened?"

He hefted the phone next to his face. "Hawking sent me a voicemail. I'll play it."

After he swiped his thumb over the small screen, a mechanical voice said, _'Greetings-Mr.-Cullen-I've-prepared-this-message...'_

I scrunched up my face in concentration. So Carlisle had met this professor. If that was the case, they sure were well connected. I wondered about the vision the pixie had, and that guy that walked around carriages or whatever. My attention wandered all over the place until Edward poked my ribs.

I listened to the tinny voice coming from his phone. I'd grown more accustomed to the device Hawking used, so I followed the words easily.

 _'Carlisle's story reminds me of Feynman's sum over histories,'_ said Prof Hawking. _'A system changing from A to B follows every possible path, every history. It is used effectively to explain interference patterns. Applying it to the macroscopic world would prove trickier, I think. Every 'realm', as Carlisle so quaintly puts it, would remain in their own universe. There could be no communication between realms; to break the boundaries between them would require energy in the order of magnitude that prevailed just after the Big Bang.'_

Hawking went on to explain more things but my attention wandered again until Edward lifted the phone to my face. "Listen to this!"

_'_ _I'm tired, Mr. Cullen, so I'll stop here. At any rate, my advice would be to grab onto what you hold dear in this universe and fight for it.'_

Blushing, I toyed with Edward's hair. Its silky texture tickled my fingers. "So you think the vampire I saw came from another reality?"

"Probably, or maybe from the past. If he did, his leaving could have created a fork on the road, leading to two different outcomes. I'm worried though, the man said that there was a Seer in Aro's court. The woman he mentioned, Ludmilla?" Edward smiled while he pocketed the phone. "She had a vision that Aro didn't believe. From what the vampire said, it involved American Natives. Do you remember he was startled when he recognized he was in this continent? When he saw your wonderful tone of skin."

Edward accompanied his words by rubbing my chest; his fingers toying with my right nipple. My vamp smirked when he felt my cock lengthening.

Growling, I took away his hand and disregarded his pout. "Stop it, Edward! We need to discuss this."

Sighing with a hint of disappointment, he crossed his arms. "Whatever, mutt."

Furrowing his brows, Edward mused aloud, "Why did he turn to stone? I don't get it."

"Neither do I, he just did. And after all I did to save his life!"

"Your packmates are hard to control, I saw." Edward smiled, I couldn't resist myself and I touched his right dimple.

He batted away my hand, sneering when he heard my growl. "Concentrate, remember?"

"Do you think the Volturi are involved in the vision thing?"

Edward's playful mood suddenly deserted him. He frowned fiercely, his amber eyes smoldering. "I don't know, exactly. But they won't take away what is mine to protect and cherish!"

"You mean Bella is in danger?" I snarled unconsciously.

Edward reached his hand to touch my cheek. "Don't worry about Bella, she is perfectly safe. Alice is keeping track of her, hasn't seen anything bad in her visions."

"That's good to hear. With Bella far away, I worry that I won't be there to help her."

Edward shifted his head on my lap. Despite the cold coming from him, it wouldn't cool my hot groin.

"I know you miss her, Jake. I'm here to talk to, you know."

Caressing his cheek, I tried to sound nonchalant. "It's just that there were things only the two of us knew."

"Oh, you wanted to talk to Bella about me?" Edward smirked infuriatingly. I hated that I couldn't conceal much from him!

Trying to distract my telepathic lover, I thought about the conversation I'd had with dad.

The effect was instantaneous. Edward jumped from my lap like a startled frog. Framing my head with his hands, he snarled. "Hallowed moon? What is that?"

"You didn't read it all?"

"I couldn't, your mind kept shifting." Edward kissed me, it wasn't a sensual kiss. Rather he was seeking reassurance, that I was still present and hadn't run away. It had the same tentative quality as the kiss I bestowed on my dad's forehead when I found him asleep on his wheelchair.

He touched his forehead against mine. It felt like the times I'd had a headache and put ice on it to soothe the pain. The scent of my vampire distracted me as Edward growled, "Concentrate, wolf!"

"I'll try, but you are distracting me."

I closed my eyes; anchored to the moment by Edward's coolness surrounding me - the pressure of his body against mine - his scent everywhere. I recalled my father's words. I blushed when I realized that would necessarily include my coming out to dad and talking about my own special Cullen. Shrugging, I remembered the conversation.

The coldness went away. I opened my eyes and watched Edward's frowning face. He'd stood up and now was looking at the distance, at the forest around us. Maybe he was recalling Billy's words about the vision the Third Wife saw. When the brilliant moon broke up and the forest disappeared - and the lonely tree was held in place by that young guy, the shifter.

Edward ruffled his hair. I thought what it would look like, sweaty and plastered against his head as he lay below me and I plowed that tight ass.

The vampire tried to smile, but it came out as a grimace. "For your information, wolf, I don't sweat. And the other thing, we'll discuss it later. There are much more important matters to consider."

Who was he kidding? I could see the tent forming in his designer jeans. If I couldn't read his mind, Edward's body held no secrets to me. I wanted to explore it, to make it mine. To mark him as my own, as my crazy wolf now demanded.

Edward turned away while I snorted. I directed a sharp thought at him. _'You're fooling no one, Cullen!'_

Then I recalled my dad's somber expression, and my playfulness left me like waterdrops sliding down the windshield of my car during the rain.

Taking a deep breath, I asked the question I was afraid I already knew the answer to. "Do you think the shapeshifter the Third Wife saw is me?"

"I don't know, Jacob. Frankly I wish it were someone else." Edward threw his arms in the air. "I'm tired of these fucking visions!"

"You and I, leech! You and I."

The vampire crouched in front of me, idly grabbing a few wildflowers that stood near the tree. "Your father's words are very intriguing, Jacob. He's a very wise man, powerful in knowledge."

I noted he didn't look into my eyes. Instead he shied away, staring at the tall grass. He looked nervous.

I couldn't help myself. I snorted when I reached the only possible conclusion, cracking a smile. "You're afraid of my father!"

Edward growled. "Everyone is afraid of meeting the in-laws, Jacob!"

"Oh, you consider Billy your father-in-law!" I loved it when I riled him up. It was funny and sexy as hell to watch him scowl and glare at me.

The vampire snorted. "You're aware that makes you the wife?"

"No way! Just because I was the bottom doesn't mean that always-"

Edward held up his hand, interrupting me. "We'll discuss it later, Jake. I'll say this, I'm amenable to a change in positions."

"Oh, you wanna get fucked, badly."

Edward snarled; pushing his hand against my chest, he pressed me into the bark. For a moment, I was afraid I'd push my vamp too far. "Later, Jacob Black. We'll indulge your outrageous libido later. I want to talk about the vision!"

"Cool, man! Don't get so defensive." I smiled at him to take away the sting, hoping that he found it irresistible.

Edward shook his head, smiling ruefully. "You're going to drive me crazy, Jake. You're way worse than Bella."

"So what do you think the vision meant?"

Edward shrugged. "I don't know, frankly. I hope to find out more. I'm reading sci-fi stories-"

"Nerd!"

Edward went on, pretending he didn't hear me. For the sake of his unbeating heart, I kept my mouth shut. "Stories that deal with alternate realities, though Hawking has given me food for thought. I think there must be a kernel of truth behind those tales. In physics class the teacher taught about quantum mechanics. You've ever heard of Schrödinger's cat?"

"Sure. Teacher Wilson at the Rez high school had it on the quiz. You put a cat in a box with poison. The venom is released when someone opens the box. When you do, you change the cat's life. Until then, there's no way to know if the cat's dead or alive. So the cat's half alive."

"Colorfully put, but you got the gist. The cat could be dead in one reality and alive in the next one." Edward looked to the sky. At that moment the cloud cover parted and a beam of sunlight fell on a patch of grass two feet to his left.

Damn, I wanted the sun to shine on Edward! I'd grown to like it when he sparkled like my own gazillion-carat diamond.

Reading my thoughts, the sneaky vampire smirked and rapidly moved to the illuminated spot. Smiling innocently like a diamond Buddha, he said, "Alice has visions of the future but we can change the outcome. What if what we do changes reality, creating a new one? There'd be two worlds, one in which the vision occurred and the one where we prevented it."

I squirmed against the bark. I recalled one of the pixie's visions, the one that made Bella jump on a plane and fly to Italy. The one where my vamp died. I growled low in my throat at the thought of Edward lying dead in some Italian guys' mausoleum.

Edward went to me, touching my chin with his thumb. Rubbing it across my lips, he murmured, "Don't worry, Jacob. I will always be with you."

I pushed away his hand, suddenly very angry. "Don't make promises you can't keep! I'm not Bella; you don't have to coddle me! I can take a lot of shit, man. I've done it my whole life."

Edward frowned, shaking his head as if he couldn't understand me. Taking a few deep breaths to calm down, I tried to smile, realizing I'd been too harsh on the vampire. He was only trying to be nice and didn't deserve my outburst. Frankly I didn't know why I was so moody, more so than usual.

In a serious tone, Edward continued, "I'm worried about what the old vampire said, Jacob, and your father's words. Promise me you'll take care of yourself. Watch very carefully when you patrol. I know I can't forbid you to do it, you wouldn't listen anyway. Just… take care, ok?"

Edward sounded so forlorn. I wanted to reassure him, to say that I would stay with him forever. I was worried that if something happened to me he'd do something stupid, just like he did when he thought Bella had died. But I held my tongue, recalling my own words. I would come off like a hypocrite.

Edward smiled reassuringly. "You don't have to say a word, Jacob. I understand."

* * *

\--

 _'That's no excuse, Jake. You have to patrol the Quillayute tonight.'_ Sam's golden eyes were fixed on me.

 _'But, Sam! Quil smelled a vampire in Forks.'_ I growled, crouching down. I wanted to patrol near Charlie Swan's house. If a stray vampire wanted to hurt the Cullens, especially Edward, they would try to kill Bella. She'd told me it was the strategy the leech called James followed.

 _'It doesn't matter, Jacob. We have a duty to defend our land, first and foremost.'_ Sam's muzzle twitched, his ears pulling back. Despite his conciliatory words, his stance suggested he was ready to attack me.

_'But you might be right. I'll send Seth to Forks.'_

_'No! The kid will be an easy target for the vampire.'_ I lowered my head, snarling.

 _'Who're you calling kid, Jake?'_ Seth shifted restlessly, his muzzle near the ground. He was trying to sound brave but he was worried, as well he should be. Sam was assigning him a difficult task.

 _'Stand back, Seth. Let them discuss this.'_ Leah bit Seth's shoulder in warning. I shot her a grateful look.

_'My order stands, Jake. The tribe is our main concern right now.'_

_'But if the vampire is in Forks, we can attack him there and there'll be no need to spread the pack.'_ I pleaded with the Alpha, trying to use logic. _'You can send me with Quil and Embry. Jared, Seth, Leah and you cover the flanks of the Rez. If the bloodsucker tries to escape, we'll herd him your way!'_

_'Your plan is ill-conceived, Jake. WE'LL DO AS I ORDER. Perform your duty.'_

I recoiled from Sam's deep growl. I felt uncertainty wash over me. My muscles moved unwillingly, my legs preparing to run in the direction of the Quillayute. Snarling, I realized Sam had used an Alpha order on me!

If we followed Sam's plan, the vampire in Forks would surely kill Seth. Despite his bravery, the kid was still small, and he hadn't fought as many vampires as I had. He needed time to grow into his wolf form. He didn't deserve to be sent alone to fight unknown vampires when the pack was there to fight together, like our totems did. Wolves hunted in packs, a fact our leader seemed to be willfully ignoring, intent on following his own ill-conceived plans.

I chanced to look at Seth. He was still trying to say something but a fierce snarl from Sam shut him up. Leah looked at me with a haunted expression in her dark eyes. Her grey fur bristling, Leah nipped Seth's flanks to keep him from interfering.

The last rays of the twilight made both her and Seth's shadows vanish into the copse near the pond. Would Seth disappear tonight, the victim of a cruel vampire?

I shivered and my fur bristled. Streams of saliva ran down my muzzle as I growled. The rest of the pack backed away, mindful of the coming confrontation, for the moment had arrived at last when I would challenge Sam for the leadership of the pack.

I didn't want that on top of my other troubles. The worries about Bella and my growing feelings for Edward. My sexual orientation was unknown to several members of the pack. What would they do if I won, became the Alpha and they found out they had a gay leader?

I knew I couldn't count on Paul or Jared. They were short-tempered and not particularly inclined towards me. They clearly preferred Sam's leadership.

I didn't want to split the pack over the issue of my sexuality, not when there was a coming storm involving the pixie's visions and the one my father told me.

I'd carefully refrained from thinking about my times with Edward. If a pack member sought to probe my mind, I mentally snarled and bit their legs - my projection of them anyway. The mental analogue seemed to do the trick and they didn't repeat their invasion after the first try.

My forelegs twitched, itching to follow the Alpha's orders. But I resisted, gritting my teeth. I wouldn't do that to Seth, the kid that always looked up to me, the one I roughhoused with. Holding the mental image of Seth's trusting face smiling at me, I glowered.

I was sick and tired of following Sam's stupid orders! Like the one he gave me commanding me not to tell Bella about us. Could've saved us a lot of trouble if I'd told her! I did anyway. I found a loophole then and I'd do it again.

My resolve grew and the world shifted around me. For a moment the trees disappeared, the pack became as translucent as the fog over the woods. Sam's insistent mental command vanished. The ground trembled as I shifted my stance, my muzzle pointing, unerringly, towards Forks.

I felt the pack's presence return with a vengeance. Their odors were sharper. I could sense that Leah took a bath and used the shampoo we teased her about. I saw Sam's fur distinctly. For a second I felt as if I could count each hair. The running water of the Quillayute beckoned far behind the woods, but I had other business tonight.

I took several steps towards Forks, my walk growing steadier as the seconds ticked by.

 _'JAKE, STOP! I COMMAND YOU.'_ Sam's order had become meaningless. I shrugged it off as easily as I did Bella's nagging.

I ran towards the town. I heard Seth, Quil and Embry following me. I wouldn't split the pack; they had to follow Sam's orders for now. I'd become a pack of one - myself.

Turning for an instant, I growled. _'DON'T FOLLOW ME TO FORKS.'_

It seemed to work because I didn't hear anything but the wind as I ran to the town.

* * *

\--

I crouched behind the pine trees on the shoulder of Russell Road, two hundred feet from Chief Swan's house. I'd been right; the stench of vampire was heavy in the air.

I felt strong, filled with determination. I'd stop the vampire before he could kill Charlie. I would prevent their use of Bella as bait to lure Edward to them, whoever they were.

I pawed the soft ground, laying in wait for the vampire. I scented him nearby. I was trembling with exertion. Breaking the chain that bound me to Sam's orders, while liberating, had taken its toll.

When I noticed the tree shimmering, I shook my head. Obviously the ordeal was still affecting me.

When I sniffed, I sensed nothing. Neither the vamp's stench nor the flowers I knew were behind it or the smell of gasoline in the town.

The shimmer continued as my vision grew dim. Was I suffering from some unknown effect of leaving the pack?

I tried to run when the blurry outlines of the trees were enveloped in a mist that grew thicker by the second. My sense of smell disappeared completely. I became even more alarmed when I felt a twig break under my paws, for I could hear nothing.

My limbs felt heavy; my forelegs gave way and my belly fell to the ground. Still I felt nothing, didn't sense the grass or the earth I knew was beneath me.

The mist grew darker until it obscured everything. Lifting my muzzle, I tried to find the bright moon above me. Because it was almost full it should've been visible. I saw nothing as my head fell to the ground.

I fought with all my might against the enveloping darkness. It lifted for a moment and I saw a guy. His hair was dark brown and his eyes red. He was beautiful like the other vampires. He was shaking his head and his words, English with a heavy accent, came to me. "Stop struggling, wolf. The Volturi want to dispose of you."

 

 


	5. The confrontation

**EPOV**

The ivory keys felt smooth against my fingers as I finished playing Debussy's _Arabesque_. Recalling Jake's teasing about who would top brought a smile to my lips. It wasn't ever going to be easy between us but I looked forward to the challenge. Jake's playful nature was delightful, although sometimes he drove me crazy.

Looking down at my watch, I noticed the night had passed rapidly. I'd spent most of it combing through my library, researching alternate realities. I'd also listened to Professor Hawking's voicemail, notably the part where he mentioned that a worldline was the history of a person in 4 dimensions.

I didn't understand the part about an event horizon keeping violations of causality from ever being observed, however.

I wanted so much to talk to Carlisle but he was at the hospital. There were so many ideas in my mind fueled by Jacob's thoughts that exhausted me. Hence I'd turned to my solace, classical music.

I'd played Elvis' _'Hound Dog'_ on the CD player, but its rhythm and the memories it evoked weren't particularly palatable at that moment. I wanted to immerse myself in something more soothing.

I took out my phone, glancing at the screen. While I researched desperately, trying to make sense of the different prophecies of the future, I'd tasked Alice with protecting Jake. She would be able to follow him, acting as his secret bodyguard. She could occasionally see him in her premonitions.

God knew with all the dangers that threatened my wolf - the strange words of the vampire from the far past and Alice's daunting vision - I wanted to protect Jacob as much as I could.

Most of all I needed to discover the key to find out what threatened the world. If what the strange vampire said was true, the Volturi received a prophecy hundreds of years ago concerning the fate of humanity and they disregarded it.

I felt it was all coming to a crash. The Volturi, the legend Billy Black told Jake and Alice's vision, all that was downright disquieting. I had to find the solution and save Jake from the Volturi.

I ruffled my hair, desperate to talk to Carlisle. When I'd returned from talking to Jacob I found out  there'd been an emergency at the hospital. Meanwhile Emmett, Rosalie and Esmée had gone hunting.

Why were circumstances conspiring against us? Just when I found out I could have an easy friendship with Jake - that the wolf's sarcastic mood fit mine perfectly - the world had to intrude on our relationship!

I grabbed the blue sci-fi pocketbook which had yet another story about many worlds and tore it apart. The ripping sound was satisfying. Snarling, I threw it at the window.

I stood up and pushed away the piano, smirking at the jarring sound. Hefting the heavy Physics textbook, I ripped it too, letting the pieces fall to the gleaming wood floor.

Jasper opened the door. As he strolled into the room, his blond hair shined in the early morning sun. "What's up, Edward? You're more angsty than usual."

"Alice told you about her vision?"

Jasper nodded. "Of course. We don't hide things from each other. I waited for you to confide in me, but you were… busy."

I looked at the window, noting that the moon was disappearing behind the tallest pines. "I've been busy with Jacob. We're together you know."

"Figured as much." Jasper picked up the half-book that lay on the floor near his feet and ruffled through its pages. "What's quantum mechanics have to do with this?"

"When I told Carlisle about Alice's vision he told me a story. He mentioned different versions of the world, alternate endings to Alice's premonitions. I researched…"

I took out my phone again, frowning at the screen. Why hadn't Alice called?

"You're worried about the wolf, aren't you?"

I nodded at him while I crossed my arms. "Jacob's father? He told him an ancient legend of his people. Someone called the Third Wife had a vision about the moon breaking up. _'Hallowed moon'_ she called it. Apparently a shifter is the solution."

"Hallowed moon?" Jasper looked at the window; the nearly full moon was still visible. "Did you know that in October we have the brightest moon of the year?"

"You're sure?"

"Yeah, it was something Maria said once. Never forgotten that." Jasper grimaced and I didn't ask him more because his remembrance of the manipulative vamp was painful enough.

Jasper and I heard it at the same instant. The sounds of running feet in the distance, rapidly approaching our house. I rushed out of the room and ran downstairs. The rhythm of the footsteps was different than Jake's, more timid. Opening the front door, I grimaced when t the scent of wet dog hit my nostrils.

Seth ran to me, blubbering, "Sam didn't want us to… can't override Jake's orders… he's missing… need you."

Several things happened nearly simultaneously. I read the kid's mind. I wanted to calm him down but I couldn't, because I was frantic. I felt like throwing myself to the ground and running in circles, Seth's news made me desperate. That idiot, Sam, had allowed Jacob to venture alone into the town, knowing there were vampires there!

What if Jake had been killed? My knees buckled and I made contact with the grass.

I didn't notice Alice had returned until her small hand touched my shoulders. Her voice brimming with sympathy, my sister said, "It was Alec who took him, Edward. I was following your Jacob. The Volturi knocked me down near Charlie's house. When I came to, I smelled the dog's scent but they were gone by then."

I moaned so brokenly, even Seth seemed to react to my grief. The worst had happened; they had taken Jacob from me! He was at the inexistent mercy of the Volturi. What if Alice's vision changed for the worse? What if they killed him before we could arrive?

In the periphery of my mind, I felt Carlisle's calming thoughts. _'What's going on, Edward? Do not worry; we'll help as much as we can.'_

It didn't comfort me very much until a feeling of calming reassurance wrapped around my mind like a warm blanket. Looking up, I noticed Seth had stopped fidgeting and was smiling in bliss. That meant Jasper was using his powers to calm me.

Buoyed by the calmness afforded by my brother's power, I stood up. "We'll have to go to Italy. Jake's been taken prisoner by the Volturi!"

I turned to Alice, who was nodding energetically. I wanted to exhaust all possibilities so I asked her, "You've had more visions?"

My sister shivered, "I've had a few but they were contradictory, and very brief. It's as if the future's closing its doors to my powers."

Walking to the house, I muttered despondently, "How will we get to Italy? We'll have to book tickets and-"

Carlisle put a hand on my shoulder. "Don't worry, Edward. I know a few people that owe me favors. I'll be able to arrange transportation."

I hadn't noticed my missing phone until I saw Seth using it. The Quileute boy put his hand over its surface, smiling at me. "I'm calling Quil and Embry. We're going with you to save Jake. Gotta get them out of the Rez anyway, before Sam gives them an order."

I cocked an eyebrow at Carlisle. Smuggling the Quileutes into Italy was going to be a big problem, I doubted they had passports.

I walked into our house, turning to look at the boy. "I'm sorry, Seth. But we don't have time to get-"

"Actually, that's good." Jasper interrupted me as he put his hand on Seth's shoulders.

The boy held the phone tentatively, looking at us with big eyes. "Should I call them?"

Jasper turned to smile at me while he directed his words to the Quileute. "Go on, Seth. We need all the help we can get if we are to fight the Volturi."

My brother entered the house. Crossing his arms, he frowned at the others. "Carlisle, I trust you're going?"

"Sure, I won't let Edward or Jacob face the Volturi without me."

"Perfect. Your presence will help with Aro. We'll try to put enough pressure on him to relent."

Carlisle unbuttoned his white coat, turning to Alice. "Can you lend me your phone, dear?"

"Here you are."

* * *

\--

Alice patted my shoulder. "It's 2.00 am. We still have time. We'll get there in time to save him, Edward. I trust the vision."

I reclined my head against the luxurious leather seat, looking around at the white, sterile interior of the private plane Carlisle got for us.

I could read the thoughts of Jake's friends at the back of the cabin. Quil was jostling Embry while Seth dozed, his mind dwelling in green prairies full of food.

Carlisle was seated at the front of the cabin, talking softly with Jasper as they made plans to change the minds of the Volturi.

"We don't know what happens after I get there. With all those prophecies, I don't know if Jake will survive. If he doesn't…" I trailed off, not wanting to expose my thoughts.

Alice grimaced in pain, lightly touching my shoulders. "We'll save him, Edward. Trust me!"

I looked at the flat screen in front of me. There was a BBC show, judging from the woman's British accent. It was some sort of stupid news program, hardly what I needed to hear right then.

"I still don't know what the visions mean!" I squirmed on the seat in frustration. Looking at my sister who was fingering the cuff of her jacket, I raised an eyebrow. "What do you think, Alice?"

"I'm not sure, Edward. You told me about Billy's tale; that premonition of the moon disappearing. It's an end of the world prophecy I guess. Very common in all cultures."

"Spare me the lecture!"

Alice swatted my shoulder. "I'm only trying to help! Anyway, I can't make heads or tails of it." She lifted her arms in exasperation. "You confused me with all your talk about alternate realities and quantum this and quantum that!"

I mumbled, "Shouldn't have asked your opinion!"

Alice ignored me as was her wont when she pursued a particular topic. "What's intriguing is the vampire Jacob found, the one that turned to stone? If he really came from the past and Aro knew of the vision the woman called Ludmilla had long ago? You told me it portended the end of humanity, why didn't he act?"

That was easy to answer. "He didn't believe her."

"That's unlike the Aro we know. Remember he's been after me for years. He likes to collect powerful people like Alec and Jane." She shivered, her hand softly rubbing the black slacks she was wearing.

"I guess what the Seer told them scared him so much Aro chose not to believe her." I shrugged, trying to read Carlisle's mind as I talked to Alice. "Happens to powerful people, they all want to hide from unpleasant truths."

She nodded. "I guess the end of the world would be pretty unpleasant."

Alice looked out the window, staring wistfully at the silver clouds bathed by the moonlight. "We'll reach the coast of Portugal soon. I've always wanted to soar above the clouds. Did I tell you once I had a vision of a man in a plane? It was beautiful and sad, he was destined…"

Her thoughts suddenly vanished. I jerked up my head, wincing from the very unpleasant sensation. Alice's mind was completely blank. I grabbed her hand, yanking it forcefully but she didn't react. Her eyes were staring lifelessly at the screen, she wasn't moving at all.

I panicked, yelling, "Carlisle, there's something wrong with Alice!"

There was a blur as Carlisle made his way to our seats. He reclined over me, gingerly touching her. "What happened, Edward?"

"I don't know. We were talking and suddenly her mind was a blank. Can't you do anything?"

Carlisle effortlessly lifted her slim, inert body and took her to the other aisle. After he gently laid her down upon the seats, he rubbed her shoulders. "I would say this looks like the effects of Alec's power, but he's not around."

Jasper's voice sounded frantic as he framed Alice's head. "Wake up, darlin', wake up!" His face strained with effort, in his mind I found out he was using his powers to the utmost in order to calm us down. "Do you reckon it's the aftereffects of Alec's attack?"

"Maybe, I can't say anything more precisely. I'm sorry." Carlisle bit his lip as he closed Alice's eyelids.

Recalling Jake's tale about the vampire from the past, I pinched Alice's hand repeatedly.

"What are you doing, son?"

"Just making sure she's alright." I didn't want to confide the reason I did that was the fear that she would turn to stone like that man. Carlisle seemed to understand though. He said out loud, "Her skin is pliable and soft, that's good."

"What's going on, man?" Seth stood on the aisle two seats away from me.

"Alice, she's sick. Carlisle doesn't know what it is."

"I hope she gets better. She's been nice to me." Seth fiddled with his jacket. It was obvious he was uncomfortable wearing it. Alice had forced the Quileute boys to dress more conservatively, even though Carlisle assured us he had old acquaintances at Italian customs that would allow us free passage.

Seth fished for something in the pocket of his jacket, finally taking out Alice's cell phone. He handed it to me with a shy smile. "Sorry, after she gave it to me I never returned it. Guess I'm worried about Jake."

"It's fine, Seth."

Hefting the phone, I walked to the front of the cabin, too nervous to stay in one place. I could sense the apprehension in Carlisle's mind, slightly dulled by Jasper's powers.

I was very worried; it seemed things kept getting worse. It had never been like this when I was with Bella. When she was in danger we all acted decisively and most of the time I felt I was doing something useful. The shock of Alice seemingly fainting, added to Jake's kidnapping, was fraying my nerves.

I held up the phone, studying it. It was a new model whose features I didn't know well. It was like Alice to get the newest inventions. There was a column of photos, apparently linked to different web pages.

I touched the uppermost one, calling up a browser window. It was the wikileaks page.

What the hell? Why was Alice interested in that? Did it have something to do with our problem? I read the brief summary, interested to find out why she had it on her phone. I respected her judgment, it was quite intuitive unlike my own.

_Internal CERN emails reveal heated dispute amongst scientists. CERN's Large Hadron Collider will be employed on October 12_ _th_ _in an attempt to create the Higgs boson, the elusive ´God particle' that played a pivotal role in the creation of the universe. Leading physicists expressed their concern that the experiment's settings have not been the subject of an appropriate peer review. The case has an eerie parallel with fears expressed by laymen, who fear the end of the world if it takes place. The committee in charge of the heavily funded experiment will reach its decision on October 11_ _th_ _, 6.00 am, Geneva time._

This was strange, but I didn't see how it could affect us.

Carlisle's shout of joy rang through the cabin. "Alice, you're back!"

Pocketing the phone, I made my way to the rear. Alice was slowly sitting up with a dazed expression on her elfin features. She blinked at us and then frowned. Her first words were far from reassuring. "I can't see the future!"

She put her face between her hands, moaning. "The visions are gone!"

Carlisle touched her head. "What happened, dear? Edward said your mind suddenly disappeared."

"I don't know. I was talking with Edward one second and then I blanked out or something. The next thing I felt was your hand on my forehead. I thought a vampire had knocked me out across the ocean." She looked at Carlisle with a pleading expression. "Maybe they have a new power? Anyway I tried to sense the Volturi. Nothing! I tried other people too, and I can't see anything!"

Alice calmed down as a wave of soothing emotions came over all of us. I noticed Jasper lurched to the seat next to her and sat down heavily.

The plane jerked, hitting a pocket of turbulence. I hoped we'd reached the airport soon. Looking at my watch, I noticed it was 2.50 am. We'd reach Italy soon; I did the calculations, in Volterra it was 6.50 am. Hopefully Carlisle's contacts would help us pass unnoticed.

Then something clicked in my thoughts. Alice passed out around 2.40 am. I took out her phone and checked the hour on the wikileaks page. That committee decision had been expected around 6.00 am, Geneva time. Could it be that their decision somehow impacted Alice?

I brushed Seth and Quill aside to get to her seat. Leaning down, I gave her the phone.

"Alice, why were you browsing the wikileaks page?"

She squinted at the phone as her fingers caressed the screen. Alice opened the window and read a bit. Shrugging, she put it back in her pocket. "I had a feeling. Can't explain it very well. It must have been something in my vision. Sometimes there are little details that I'm not aware of, you know? They make me clue in on information I've missed, like those subliminal messages on the TV. Actually it's creepy. Like an old Twilight Zone episode."

I smiled uncertainly, recalling those old TV shows. They were scary, like the one where the world ended and the guy had all those books to read but his glasses cracked.

Just like the last piece of a puzzle, everything happened at once in my brain. The pieces formed and the picture they revealed was terrifying. I plopped down on the seat.

With a weak voice, I told Carlisle, "Do you remember the 40's and 50's?"

"Sure, Edward. Times were simpler, it seemed."

I rubbed my forehead, trying to stamp out the indelible memories but I knew it was fruitless. "Do you recall someone said when he was watching the first atomic bomb he was reminded of a poem? I forget if it was Chinese or-"

"It was Hindu, Edward." Carlisle nodded sympathetically. "Oppenheimer quoted from the Bhagavad Gita. If I recall correctly, ' _Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds_.'"

He furrowed his brows in puzzlement, taking the seat on the opposite side of the aisle.

"Carlisle, I remember reading later, maybe in the 60's that…" I trailed off as I tried to frame my insights into something he could follow.

I gazed at the window behind Carlisle as I continued. "When the test was about to begin - the first atomic bomb in the world to explode - several scientists thought that the nuclear chain reaction caused by the bomb wouldn't stop. That it would spread all over the world and it would end." My fingers trembled as I pointed to Alice.

"Those people at CERN?" After Alice nodded, I went on. "They're going to try to create that 'God particle,' I don't care about its name. I've read so many damned things! The world… it's going to end. That's why you can't see the future anymore; I guess there is none to see."

They were going to create some kind of event horizon like Professor Hawking said; causing the worldlines to go haywire and catapulting people across time, incidentally ending the world!

"No way, man!" Quil piped up from his seat, two rows in front of me.

"Let the man talk, Quil!" Embry sighed, rubbing his forehead. He was as confused as I.

"What does that have to do with Jake?" Seth bit his lip, his feet shuffling on the white carpet of the plane.

"You really think so, Edward?" Carlisle's calm tone soothed my nerves. He was always like this, collected and precise as he analyzed everything before he reached a conclusion. That manner and his knowledge made him an excellent doctor and a good father.

"I'm sorry, but it all fits." I looked at my family and the Quileutes, convinced that we were the only bulwark against the Third Wife's legend becoming true. "The damned experiment is going to take place tomorrow, during October's full moon. The brightest of the year… the hallowed moon."

"Is that all you have?" Jasper scowled at me. I knew he meant no ill will. Like the master strategist he was, my brother was probing, trying to grasp the situation to exploit it to his advantage. To do that he needed all the information he could gather.

"All the different visions fit, Jazz." I replied wearily. "It's like a delta where all the different parts of the river flow together to the sea."

I motioned to my sister. "Alice saw it, three different Jakes. She can see my wolf intermittently when she couldn't before. Do you recall I told you about Jane's visit?"

Jasper nodded slowly, his arm wrapped protectively around Alice.

"Jane said the Volturi's seer, Irina, had a vision. She wanted me to work with the pack!" I shook my head as I tried to puzzle the inscrutable motives of the Volturi. "But then why did they kidnap Jacob?"

"I can answer that, Edward." Carlisle reclined on the leather seat, his gaze fixed on the top of the cabin. "There are factions among the Volturi. The triumvirate knows that it can only lead by consensus. When it breaks, they are bound to fight and with their deadly powers, Aro knows the Volturi would be decimated if he tried to force them to do something. It's quite likely that he ordered Jacob's kidnapping because he wanted to see how it played among the factions. After all, he rules in the manner of a shrewd Renaissance prince."

I grimaced; the worry about Jake's well-being hadn't left me at all and knowing that my wolf was a pawn made me feel small indeed. I frowned at Alice. "Jacob's father told him about the vision the Third Wife had about the Hallowed-"

"Jake told you about the Hallowed Moon?" Seth's voice had a reverential tone. When Quil nudged his elbow, the Quileute boy hastened to explain. "Mom told us, me and Leah. The Third Wife saw the moon destroyed and our woods too! Only a shifter held the world together, she said. Hope it's me!"

"You never told us," said Quil roughly.

"You never asked, man!"

"Jake didn't tell us, and we're his best friends!" Embry sat heavily on the seat, clearly disappointed with my mutt.

I had to defend my wolf. "He learned of this vision only recently, guys."

Taking a deep breath, I continued. "At the exact moment that committee at CERN took their decision to go on with the high-energy experiment, Alice fainted."

Ignoring my sister's snort, I plodded on. "Alice can't see the future anymore. It can only mean that the future is gone."

"So there's no hope then?" Carlisle quirked his eyebrow at me.

"There's always hope. I guess it has to do with alternate realities and Jake's shifting abilities." I shrugged helplessly. "I'm not sure. I don't know all the answers."

"Hey, what about the guy we met?" Seth said, gazing at the clouds outside the window. "That bloodsucker was from the past, Jake was sure of that. He ordered us not to kill him."

Quil shrugged indifferently. "Didn't matter, the guy turned into a stone."

"How do you think the old vampire fits, Edward?" Carlisle's tone was contemplative. "Do you think it was similar to the man who walked around the horses?"

Seth looked up at me. "What man? What horses?"

"It was a guy two centuries ago, Seth." I explained briefly. I tried to fit the story of the strange vampire who died into my hypothesis, knowing I was grasping at straws. "I'm not sure. It may be that if the world really ends, it will affect us not instantaneously like a nuclear bomb, but in ripples. The worldlines that describe a person's journey through life could get entangled. It would mean they could go to the future."

I looked sharply at Alice. "It also explains why you see Jake in your visions. His worldline will be affected or was affected." I shrugged helplessly. "Wish I could talk with Hawking but he must be asleep right now."

"So?" Jasper cocked an eyebrow at me. He hadn't understood much and in that he was like me.

Shrugging, I tried to order the ideas I had gleaned from the sci-fi stories and the physics lectures I'd received through my endless high school years. "I imagine the effects expand through time and space and cause strange things to happen, like yanking people out of their time and sending them to the future or another reality."

I stood up and started pacing down the aisle. "Who knows? Maybe this failed experiment was the primal thing that caused vampires and shapeshifters to exist."

"Edward, that's farfetched." Alice said as she fiddled with her phone. Looking up at us, she explained, "I'm trying to download a map of the CERN installations, so we know where to go."

"Do you think that's necessary, Alice?" Carlisle fingered the lapels of his suit, staring solemnly at us.

"If what Edward says it's true, we have to stop that experiment from happening." Alice swiped her thumb over her phone while she shrugged. "Hey, that thing is huge, miles long! It's in both France and Switzerland. How will we know where to go?"

"First things first, pixie. We have to rescue Jake!" said Quil, squaring his shoulders.

"Of course we'll rescue him! But how will we pass through the CERN security guards?" Alice lifted her hands exasperatedly.

"This is where I come in." Carlisle's soothing voice calmed my sister. "The Volturi surely can get us there."

He motioned vaguely to the windows of the plane. "They've ruled over this land a long time. For thousands of years they've controlled the vampires of the Continent. They've made connections we can use. It's how I intend to get these young men through the customs at Milan." Carlisle looked at Quil and Embry.

Seth pointed out the obvious flaw in my father's plan. "How will we get these Volturi guys to help us? Jake told me they were kind of evil."

Jasper said confidently, "And this is where I come in."

* * *

\--

With all the tension in my mind as I sought to save Jake and stop the goddamned experiment from taking place, the rest of the flight passed in a blur. From the plane Carlisle called up an acquaintance he knew from his days with the Volturi. As he'd promised, we were ushered through customs at Malpensa Airport in Milan.

There were two limousines waiting for us. The trip through the Toscana countryside wouldn't stick in my memory, despite the occasional flashes of beautiful wheat fields brightly lit by the Toscana sun.

I recalled staring at my reflection on the tinted windows of the Mercedes limousine. I watched critically the sharp planes of my cheeks, the eyebrows, the light eyes and the ruffled hair. I wondered what Bella and Jacob saw in me. I wanted to save the world for Bella, of course. But most of all, I yearned to spend my life with the sarcastic wolf.

He really drove me crazy and yet he made me smile. He had that delectable body, though the most important thing was his personality, his mind.

With a start, I realized I was falling in love with Jacob. Taking a leaf out of my wolf's mind, I wryly reflected; who was I kidding? I already loved the mutt. My wolf, my Jake.

* * *

\--

Volterra was different from my earlier recollections. I didn't pay much attention to the surroundings because my mind was entirely fixed on Jake's welfare. I did notice that the sun shined more and there were fewer people.

The cowl hiding my face from the inquisitive glances of the mortals felt heavy against my head when we arrived at the place that led to the catacombs. We followed Jasper's orders.

It was surprisingly easy. All Carlisle had to do was confront the Volturi guards with the simple words, "We've come to join Aro."

As the elevators took us down, I wondered if I would feel the same sense of shifting weight - the world falling under my feet - when the final moment came. If we failed to stop that experiment and the world truly ended. Incongruously, that thought led me to our encounter in the woods when Jake wanted me to make love to him.

Given Jacob's insistence on topping, it wouldn't be fair if the world ended without him fucking me. I cracked up a smile at my quirky, kinky mind. The Volturi in front of me shook his head; luckily he didn't have my powers.

We rushed through the corridors, approaching the chamber where the Volturi held court. I heard a whimpering noise coming from inside and I lost my mind. I could read Jacob's fear, his defiance at the Volturi who held him by his neck. Demetri was hurting my wolf!

I ran against the door, throwing my weight against the thick wood. It opened with a bang.

Rushing inside, I caught a glimpse of the beautifully colored light filtering through the windowpanes. My footsteps on the marble floor echoed on the suddenly quiet chamber.

As in Alice's vision, Marcus' noble visage expressed pain at what was happening. He was right behind the russet-colored wolf, who was snarling at Demetri. The pale Volturi held Jacob by the scruff of his neck.

I grabbed the insolent vampire who tried to hurt my wolf, twisting his arm behind his back until I heard it break.

"Stop! All of you! What's the meaning of this?"

Aro's voice rang with the power accrued to him over the millennia. As all movement ceased, the leader of the Volturi glided towards us with his usual commanding presence.

I stopped, knowing that Jasper's plan depended on our peaceful cooperation, aware that the Volturi leaders respected power and the judicious use of it.

"May I inquire how it is that you, _caro Edoardo,_ and the others passed through my guards?" Aro's red eyes sparkled with mischief as he looked at the cowed Volturi guards.

"They told us they'd come to join you, Sire!"

"And you believed them so easily? I'll have to chastise you appropriately, later... my dears."

Aro glanced at Caius. The angelic Volturi sat upon his throne, surveying us as if we intruded on his own personal creation. Noticing some Volturi behind him, I gathered that was the faction of the guards that stood behind the blond vampire's actions.

"Kill him!" Caius glared at Jacob with such hatred, it took me aback. The devilishly handsome blond gazed at Quil, Embry and Seth, who stood by the door. "The slavering dog must die. They all must die, and those who are their friends!"

The sad voice of Marcus came from behind my back. "'Tis a pity, the handsome wolf is really-"

Taking a deep breath, the brunet vampire walked till he was facing me. Marcus' eyes looked at me with deep sympathy as he continued, _"L'anima gemella d'Edoardo."_

It was obvious to me that Marcus had concurred on Jacob's death with reluctance. Torn between Marcus' and Caius' factions, Aro sought to preserve his power as usual.

I let go of Demetri. I nodded while I glanced at Jake, hoping he would understand the subtle meaning behind it.

The wolf shifted and became my beautiful soulmate, as Marcus had called him when he sensed our unbreakable tie through his unique gift. The Quileute stood tall and proud, disregarding his nakedness, clothed only in his dignity and grace.

Quil passed him some briefs he'd apparently kept in his pocket. I shook my head at Jacob's wily friend who had kept this from me.

"It is only my love for you, _caro mio,_ which keeps me from ordering the destruction of your coven and the young wolves." Aro smiled affectionately at Carlisle, belying his merciless words. "You will explain yourselves at once!"

Despite his calm demeanor, the leader of the Volturi commanded such power that my knees trembled.

I wondered if Jasper's exquisitely simple plan would succeed or if we would fall prey to the might of the Volturi, leaving the experiment at CERN to continue and the world to end.

Taking a step toward Aro, I extended my arm, offering my wrist as I bowed in submission.

Aro's red eyes sparkled with curiosity as he cocked his head, examining the situation.

Nothing moved for a few seconds. Jasper had told us the most probable outcome would be Aro succumbing to his curiosity, and it was so.

Aro gingerly took my hand in his. As he massaged my palm with his thumb, he must have been overwhelmed by the knowledge I'd so painfully acquired. The different visions, Jake and I together, all the things I'd deduced and learned through experiencing them passed to Aro in an instant.

The Volturi trembled minutely but he never lost his composure, though he lost his delightful smile, as guileless as that of a child.

Aro let go of my hand and took a step back, crossing his arms behind his back. Coughing needlessly, he pronounced his judgment. "The young wolves will live."

"But, Aro… they must die! They threaten us!"

Aro turned to face the blond vampire as Marcus sighed in satisfaction. "Dear Caius, we must let them live. Indeed, they are precious to us. It would seem I have been wrong all along. It was an error executing dear Ludmilla all those years ago."

Caius stood up with such grace it made me yearn to touch him, even knowing how hateful he was. "What do you mean?"

"You see, Ludmilla was right, as was her sister Irina. Our kind will end together with all mortals if we kill these children."

Aro, and Marcus behind him, glided through the marble floor. They walked up the marble steps with the grace a ballerina would kill for.

After they sat down, Aro steepled his fingers. "For what you are about to do, Edward, you have my blessings to continue your relationship with the young wolf. I won't threaten you, for if you fail the world will inevitably end."

Aro smiled maniacally. "That's simple enough, my dear Edward."

"We'll need the help of the Volturi." Carlisle said as he approached, bowing his obeisance to the leader of the vampires.

"You have that, _caro mio_."

 

 


	6. The hallowed moon

 

**October 12** **th** **, 11:50 pm GMT  
300 feet below Meryn, Switzerland**

Quil stared in awe at the huge metal boxes all around us. He nudged my shoulder. "We should've gone to the top managers!"

My gaze followed his to the uppermost corridor, where a man wearing a hardhat and kneepads was scrambling into a cavity in the midst of the huge man-made cavern we were in.

The noise was deafening. So much so that Jake and Embry had covered their ears. Frankly I'd always pictured Physics as a quiet science; scholars in lab coats would stare at their monitors and cogitate about the mysteries of the universe. This looked entirely different. Physicists and technicians rushed by us, some wearing their white lab coats while others were dressed more formally. A few people wore short-sleeved shirts despite the cold.

Right in front of us several men and women sat around a white table. Their laptops had slim cables connecting them to the measuring apparatus around them.

"And you think they would've believed us? You're nuts, Quil!" Embry fingered his t-shirt. The place was very cold but since we were vampires and shapeshifters, it didn't affect us at all.

Amidst the bustling scientists no one paid us any mind. Aro had indeed proved his worth. Using his contacts, he'd arranged for us to pass through the guards. Alec explained to them we were visiting _wunderkinder_ , geniuses from MIT.

Now and then, the men and women would stop in their tinkering and stare at us. It never lasted more than a few seconds. Despite our safe passage inside the compound, the scientists sensed our strangeness. Their thoughts were tinged with concern regarding us. But their child-like curiosity, very similar to Aro's, prevailed and they went on with their work.

After the Volturi agreed to help us, letting Jake and the other Quileutes go, we'd planned what we would do. Time was running short. The experiment to create the God particle would take place that night.

I agreed with Quil's outburst. I had argued we should go to the committee and change their minds; if they weren't convinced we could use more persuasive means.

It was Jasper who pointed the obvious flaw. I closed my eyes, escaping for a moment the hustle and bustle of the muon particle detector on the largest collider in the world, remembering…

\--

"Alice, you still can't see the future?" I turned to look at my sister. Her elfin face expressed her pensive mood. She fiddled nervously with her cell phone. Sighing, she reclined on the leather couch of the VIP lounge at the Milan Airport.

"No, Edward. It remains closed. I feel very odd, now I get what the mortals mean when they say they can't breathe!"

Jasper put his arm around her. He made no move to soothe her with his  powers. Reading his mind, I knew he was conserving his strength. His thoughts ranged far ahead. Jasper was busy plotting, trying to visualize what would happen.

Carlisle sighed as he pocketed the phone he'd been using to try to reach his acquaintance at CERN. "Can't reach Marie Visier. She's the daughter of a Swiss man I treated in Alaska around 1942. She's kept in touch with me. Since Marie wrote she handled logistics at CERN, I thought…"

Jake put his hand on Carlisle's shoulder. "Don't worry, Dr. Cullen. We'll find another way."

He looked up at the young Quileute and smiled. "Thanks, Jacob. Please call me Carlisle."

I smirked when Jake tugged the hem of his cotton shirt. Obviously my wolf was uncomfortable because the shirt itched. Even when we rushed to save the world, racing towards Milan, Alice had phoned ahead to the duty-free boutique and ordered clothes for the Quileutes. Seth and Embry were enchanted by her gesture but Quil was indifferent, more interested in the Italians around us.

Jake hated his new clothes, though. He wore them because he had nothing else. I licked my lips, picturing the delectable image of Jake on white briefs bulging just at the appropriate place. His ass looked so firm and round, it was a pity it had to be covered.

"I wish we'd had time to prepare this." Jane said, crossing her arms. The deadly blonde exchanged a look with her twin. "Alec and I would surely find the means to persuade these mortal scientists."

Demetri nodded his assent, standing behind the petite vampire. The three Volturi guards wore dark glasses. With their long leather black coats reaching to their thighs, they looked like fashion models that would strut the catwalks for the Milanese fashion shows.

In fact, several people had tried to get their autographs. For their sake I had to push them away, having read the sanguinary minds of the Volturi.

I looked sharply at Jane. "We could use you."

When she visited me in Forks, I'd seen a side of her I liked. I found her the easiest Volturi to communicate with.

"I think we should go to that committee and force them to review their decision. If they refused, you could persuade them." I held up my hand, frowning at their thoughts. "Not kill them, just convince them."

"Don't think it would work, Edward." Jasper left his place beside Alice and stood up. He ruffled his blond hair, eliciting a sigh from the Belgian woman who was on the other aisle.

"People are hard to persuade. During the War, the generals often sent us to the wrong place. They wouldn't be dissuaded." Jasper glanced at the glass windows of the luxurious lounge, his brows furrowed in thought.

"I have to agree with Jasper." Carlisle toyed with the phone, finally putting it in the pocket of his Armani jacket. "I've had to deal with committees during my long years working in hospitals. They're very hard to persuade once they reach a consensus. Even with the Volturi behind us, we'd take too long. The experiment would go on and we'd be powerless to stop it."

Jake stalked towards me, scowling at the woman near the door who kept giving me salacious looks. "I still don't get why that experiment is so important, Edward."

I smiled at my wolf as I touched his hand. I wanted to hold it in my own but I was afraid of his reaction, since he insisted on doing his macho thing. But after a brief hesitation he held it on his own; his warmth reassured me.

He sat down, still holding my hand as he quirked an eyebrow. I hastened to try to explain, looking intently at his handsome face. "Remember I told you on the way here about the visions and how they weaved together?"

Jake let go of my hand, nodding earnestly. "Sure, I got it. My dad's tale deals with the moon and the Earth ending. I even understand that the leech turning to stone was yanked from the past somehow."

Recalling Alice's vision, the Quileute made a fist and hit my shoulder hard. "Could've told me about the pixie's vision of me at the hands of those Volturi guys!"

"I didn't want to worry you! Alice was shadowing you. I thought we'd change that future and-"

Jake brushed aside my explanations with a wave of his hand. "Doesn't matter. You kept it from me! I want you to tell me the truth, always. Do you think I can't protect myself?"

I gulped, reading his angry thoughts.

"Edward was only trying to care for you, Jake." Seth scowled at Jacob, and I wanted to hug the boy who always tried to be fair.

"I can do it myself, Seth. I want Edward to be truthful though." Jake smiled at his friend, his mood shifting to curiosity. "How did you guys manage to come here? I thought I told you not to follow me, and since my orders have that weird effect, then-"

Embry piped up from the seat beside Quil. "You told us not to follow you to _Forks_." The russet-colored boy waved his arms, smirking. "This ain't Forks."

"Fine, fine." Jacob turned to look at me. "You haven't explained the experiment yet, Cullen."

"The largest particle collider in the world is at CERN, beneath Switzerland and France." I made a circle with my hands. "It's very big, I don't recall how many miles of circumference. They shoot particle beams accelerating at near the speed of light-"

"Traveling at relativistic speeds." When Jacob saw my puzzlement, he smiled brightly. "I read it in a Popular Mechanics article. They shoot the beams and they hit something and new particles are created. But how can they endanger the world? They've been doing it for years!"

"The difference is the energy, Jake. This time they're dealing with enormous energies. They're trying to recreate the conditions that existed just after the Big Bang." I stopped, watching his face.

After he nodded, I went on. "They want to create a Higgs boson." I lifted up my hands, forestalling his question. "I don't know what that is, exactly. They call it the _'God particle.'_ If they do manage to pump nearly the same energy that prevailed around the Big Bang, won't this be enough to create another one, therefore ending the universe?"

Jake shivered as he wrapped his arms around his torso. "How can we fight against that?"

"I'm hoping that we'll be able to. I'm trusting in the Third Wife's vision? When she watched that young Quileute save the tree during the hallowed moon." I smiled sadly at my wolf. "I'm sure the shifter is you."

Jake shook his head. "I'm not so sure, Edward. I don't have your vampire powers. I only shift." Then he frowned and turned to the window, watching the huge Alitalia Airbus that started moving outside.

"Exactly. Do you remember your father's words about shifting?" I enjoyed the way Jacob worried his lower lip, his eyes lighting up.

He nodded. "Dad said that when I shift, part of the world changes with me to make up for my larger muscles."

"If the worst happens and the experiment goes on… I'm afraid only you will be able to save the world."

Jake's stomach grumbled. The wolf shrugged, smiling at me winsomely. "The Volturi didn't feed me after they captured me. I'm hungry, man!"

I stood up from the leather chair, motioning to the other Quileutes. "Come on. Let's get you something to eat."

We left the others discussing strategy while we made our way to the restaurant. Quil, Embry and Seth sat down with us at the table, looking curiously at the other patrons.

The Quileutes ordered Bruschetta and Bresaola, except for Jacob who asked for a pizza.

When he saw me frowning, he explained, "Always wanted a pizza made in Italy. Never thought I'd had the chance, but since we're here and the world might end…"

Jake yelped when I pinched his butt. He glared at me so cutely I wanted to kiss him right then. "Have your pizza and don't worry. We'll come back someday. And the world? It won't end until you've…"

I shied away from telling him what I wanted. Jake lifted his eyebrow. "Until I have what?"

Taking a deep breath, I plunged ahead. "Until you've… fucked me."

Grinning wickedly, Jacob pinched my behind. "Nice way to motivate me, Edward!"

While their food was prepared I glared at the other patrons. Though I didn't understand their words, their thoughts were full of dirty imagery concerning what they wanted to do to Jake. Some of them wanted to have their way with me, a fact I was used to, so I let it pass. My wolf was another matter though.

I snarled at the Swiss woman two tables away who wanted to straddle Jacob's lap. If anyone was going to ride the wolf, it would be me!

Following my gaze, Jacob saw the woman flinch and hastily call for the waiter to bring her the check. He put his hand on my thigh as he sneered. "Now you know what I felt when I saw you with Bella."

After the Quileutes finished their meal, we made our way back to the lounge. This time it was Jacob who growled at the German teenager who winked at me.

Jasper was gesticulating with his arms. "I reckon we'll have to use…"

\--

"Our combined powers…. you're listening, Edward?" With a start, I nodded a bit shakily. I'd been so lost in remembering that I'd missed Jasper's words. Luckily I could read his mind.

The whirring of the electrical motors around us was intensifying. The boys were gazing around sharply, their faces bereft of their previous playfulness. The gravity of the situation had finally penetrated in all of us. This wasn't a simple hunt for errant bloodthirsty vampires, or even the defense of our coven or the Quileute lands. At stake was the existence of the world - humanity itself.

I noticed Jasper was holding Alice's elbow. In his mind she was her anchor to reality, to the here and now. Sniffing the cool air, Jasper shrugged as he tried to dismiss the ever present wet dog odor coming from the shifters. Finally he continued, "I will flood this place, as much as I can reach, with a wave of euphoria."

"Why?" Jane cocked an eyebrow at Jasper; she'd been distracted when he explained his reasons at the lounge, intent on controlling her hunger for the blood of the passersby.

"I've noted that when people are euphoric, they tend to open up. They babble and I'm hoping they do so mentally, too." Jasper then pointed at me. "Edward, you will read their thoughts. If you notice anything strange, out of the ordinary, we'll strike."

"I'm useless without my powers." Alice said quietly, biting her lip as she frowned at the white floor.

Jasper gently held her arm, shaking it a bit. "On the contrary, darlin'. Your powers come from your intuition and we're gonna use that. I've noticed you've kept pouring over the plans of this place." My brother looked up at the rows of heavy equipment, dotted liberally with cables whose hum had been constant since we'd been there. "When Edward tells us what's happening, you could make some sort of connection. You might have some inkling about what's goin' on. I'm counting on you."

"What about us, Cullen?" Alec pointed to his twin and Demetri.

"You'll be our guards. If the mortals stand in our way, you'll deal with them." Jasper paused, biting his lip. "Without killing them though. This is a highly visible place, I doubt even the Volturi could hide a dead technician."

Quil scratched his chest. "Man, I hope we return to Forks soon. These clothes itch!"

Jasper gazed at the three boys. "I trust your qualities as a shifter. Quil, you'll go with me and this one." He pointed at a scowling Demetri

"Embry, you'll go with Alice, Carlisle and Alec." He turned to smile at Jacob. "Of course, you'll accompany Edward and Seth. Jane will guard you."

As the people on the table started typing on their computers, I felt a wave of euphoria wash over me. We all beamed at each other, even Jane and the other Volturi.

I grabbed Jake's hand, squeezing it tightly until he grimaced in pain. It made me remember my task. I closed my eyes, listening to the thoughts of the people all around me. I concentrated, holding in my mind the mile-long circle that was the particle collider. The mental buzz of the technicians and scientists felt like a hive of disturbed bees.

I lost track of the time. Idly gazing at my watch a bit later, I noticed twelve minutes had passed since Jasper used his powers. When I looked at him, I saw Jazz was trembling. It was good that he held his powers in reserve. If he hadn't, he would have collapsed by now.

Sharp imagery came to me. A man in a white hardhat and dark vest was looking at his reflection as he pounded a metal cylinder, not trusting his eyes. The old guy quivered in excitement because the meters were going way off scale.

A second later I received similar thoughts from far away. The question was, where in that huge labyrinth?

I ruffled my hair and moaned in anguish.

"What's happening, Edward?"

Instead of answering Carlisle, I turned to my sister. "Alice, I'm reading a man bending down to read something. There's a huge cylinder in front of him in a tunnel that's immense? It disappears in the distance, bending slightly. It's almost as if I was watching down at the limb of the Earth from space."

"Give me more to go on, Edward!"

"The metal cylinders that compose this part of the collider? They have blue rings." I closed my eyes, willing the men and the woman to give me more information. "There's something that looks like a huge pipe, bending exactly in the middle like a washing machine exhaust. There's something happening in three places."

Alice squeezed my elbow. "And what else?"

"The one man is reading something from a B25 meter? The other just glanced at the wall, there's something like a white C painted on it." I shook my head, frowning as I tried to read the other person. "The woman thinks about being in Atlas? Seems like that anyway."

Alice jumped up and down excitedly. "I've got it!"

She looked up at the ceiling, scrunching up her face in concentration. Finally she motioned with her left arm to the far exit of the huge room. "Jasper, you go that way. It's about a mile away."

Without waiting for another word, Jasper ran desperately, followed an instant later by Quil and Demetri.

Alice motioned to the right. "The man with the hard hat is a mile and a half that way. I'll go to the woman who's in Atlas. I'm going to take a shortcut."

I started running. After we'd left that room, I stopped. Jake caught up with me a few seconds later, and I pointed to my shoulder. "Jump in, we'll get there faster."

He nodded and climbed on my back, putting his arms around my neck. My hands grabbed his warm shins as I ran, leaving Seth behind us and startling several people who had been staring at the monitors.

\--

Thirty seconds later, Jacob said. "Stop! I've got an idea."

I skidded to a halt. We'd advanced about three quarters of a mile. Jacob put his feet on the concrete floor, took a step back and shifted. The clothes Alice had bought for him were ripped to shreds.

As the wolf started running, he thought at me. _'We'll be faster this way, and in this form I can sense more freely. Call it gut instinct.'_

I ran behind Jacob for a second until I caught up with him. Jane was right alongside us, never missing a beat.

The wolf was so huge, he occupied almost all the corridor. The russet-colored fur shined in the light of the fluorescent strip of the overhead lights as Jacob turned his muzzle towards me. The passing light move like dancing fireflies in his dark eyes as he ran. The huge wolf skillfully evaded a startled guard who shrieked and scooted back until his back was against the wall.

As we ran farther along, I could hear the man mumbling, "A huge beast got inside, I'll kill it!"

I heard Jane's rapid steps as she ran toward the guy and a second later her cold voice. "You won't do that!"

I wanted to keep her from killing the guard but there was no time. The man with the hardhat was struggling with something. We reached him half a minute later.

The old scientist was shaking a slim tablet with a digital read out as if he couldn't believe his eyes. He was so astonished he didn't notice us. I heard the readings in his mind but to my layman's perceptions they made no sense.

I stopped but the wolf kept running. His fur was the only touch of color in the sterile environment, his steps the only natural sound in the huge tunnel.

_'There's something strange farther along.'_ The wolf's fur bristled as Jake took a deep breath.

I ran behind my wolf. I could've stayed and talked with the man but I felt that would be a waste of time. I trusted Jacob. In his mind there was an undercurrent I hadn't perceived before. All his senses were attuned to the surroundings as if he was hunting in the forest.

For a second I lost myself in his reveries. Jacob remembered his first hunt after he'd shifted. When the disorientation due to his changed state passed there was a moment when his mind accepted the reality that he was a wolf. He had reveled in the freedom afforded by this form. He ran through the forest and chased the small mammals, smelling the plants and the animals with the broad range that was denied to humans.

The vividness of his recollections made me envy the fact he was alive. He partook of the physical world and the mystical one - the legacy of his Quileute forebears that gave him the ability to shift his form at will. There was something that tied him to this earth, something I lost when I died and became the soulless vampire I was.

Jacob made a mad rash towards a spot that to me appeared identical to the thousand cylinders we'd passed by.

As I approached that place, I noticed several peculiar things. There was a yellow notepad attached to the side of the gleaming cylinder. At first I thought it had glue that kept it fixed to that spot, but then it moved up and down several inches like a small mouse. It was hot in there. It wasn't only the heat, the strangeness lay in the fact that it seemed to ebb and flow.

I stopped running and walked rapidly towards the wolf, who stopped and was beating the cylinder with his left paw.

_'A strange thing came here. It's gone now but there's something that attracts it, a weakness inside. It'll come again. Can't open the damn thing!'_

Something ruffled my hair. I noticed a current of air flowing to that spot as the notepad kept jiggling up and down.

Then I sensed the strangest thing, a pull that made me stumble towards the silver cylinder. The wolf howled as his claws scrabbled desperately against the metal.

There was a rippling sensation, it passed seemingly instantaneously. Then it returned with a kind of rhythm; the shifting gravity kept changing direction, pulsing like a heartbeat.

I imagined the beam of particles travelling near the speed of light inside the cylinder. I'd read they were contained by strong magnetic fields, but they couldn't be strong enough to change the earth's gravity. The rippling went on, expanding in waves.

The bundle of particles inside was creating something that hadn't been seen since the Big Bang. Our world, the result of billion of years of expansion after that initial shock, apparently tried to adjust itself but it wouldn't hold. Nothing could withstand the energies that were channeled inside the metal sleeve that had many miles of circumference.

Nothing physical, that is.

_'Stand back!'_

The wolf took a step back, his forelegs and tail scraping against the concrete wall. He shifted and became Jake.

His scent calmed me amid the whirlwind of sensations that ran through both of us. The notepad was bouncing madly now and the air current was creating a mist that disappeared like a miniature hurricane into the cylinder.

Jake stumbled back. The changing gravity orientation was disorienting him, messing with his balance. And the rippling continued, its rhythm changing.

Using my strength, I shook the cylinder right in the spot where the notepad kept returning. The sound of nuts falling to the floor echoed strangely to my ears. It sounded flat, as if they were in another room far away. In desperation, my hand punched the cylinder, creating a concave dent. I kept hitting the shiny surface, shaking my head at the crunching sound of the tearing metal.

Inside there was a smaller cylinder, surrounded by thick cables with different colors. It pulsed like a human vein. I stretched my arm but couldn't reach it; the magnetic fields must have been repelling me.

The pulsing intensified as the inner cylinder bulged. There were alarm klaxons blaring put I paid them no mind. The mist was now running to the cylinder, towards a darker spot that kept changing colors. There were shades I'd never seen before, which I doubted existed in the real world. I felt my feet leaving the floor as I floated in midair and my ears thrummed with the explosive bang that threw me backwards.

Jacob screamed as he watched a pale arm shot out of the cylinder. It was cut off at the shoulder, dripping a dark liquid I recognized as venom. Thankfully it wasn't any of my family.

It must've been one of the Volturi. I didn't have time to consider who because Jake pushed me. I floated away, touching the concrete wall which was cracking as pieces of it flew towards the cylinder.

Jake was nearly horizontal, his feet pointed straight to the wall as he held tightly to the jagged edge of the torn metal. His hair in disarray and a wild look on his face, he put his hand in the hole I'd created.

I bit my lip, trying to hold back my scream. There was no point in worrying about Jake's life. He was the world's hope and if he failed, the Earth would vanish just as surely as the Third Wife saw in the legend. I'd seen up close that hole; it had made me realize the forces we were fighting had no consciousness, no regard for life or humanity. They were more impersonal than the Volturi could ever hope to be.

I did not worry for Jacob because if he failed, I would vanish with him.

The air that kept disappearing didn't affect me, but I heard Jacob panting harshly. He kept moving his arm, fighting the magnetic fields like I had done.

The hole rippled again, throwing me back against the wall. Chunks of grey concrete were falling in slow motion towards the cylinder, hitting Jake who shrugged them off. Gravity was oscillating wildly now. Looking at the far side of the tunnel, I noticed that a hundred feet away, things were fine. It looked as if that was a different part of the world, normal. It wouldn't be for long if the breach in the fabric of the universe wasn't contained somehow.

I turned to look at Jacob and reached my hand to touch him. If he failed and the world ended, I wanted to die holding on to him.

Before I touched him, I saw him transform, becoming the wolf. Jake turned his muzzle sideways as he squirmed, his right paw reaching inside.

In his mind, he was holding on to something indefinable. A tiny thing he couldn't touch, nevertheless his wolf knew exactly what to do. With a twisting motion, he pushed the irregularity - the microscopic space where reality was unraveling - into the place where it couldn't do harm because the forces governing it were powerless. He sent it to the spirit world, the realm where his wolf came from.

I couldn't explain exactly what happened because it escaped my comprehension. I doubted anyone ever would, except perhaps professor Hawking.

Jake shifted back to human form as gravity returned and we fell to the floor. I recoiled when I heard the noise of Jake's arm breaking.

The notepad fell to the floor, together with the shattered pieces of concrete from the wall.

Jacob grimaced as he tried to repress his cries of pain. He moaned as he gingerly pulled his arm out of the gaping hole in the cylinder.

I bent down to gently pick him up. His bronzed skin was shiny with sweat. He tried to smile as he gasped. "We did it, Edward."

Turning to walk towards the cavernous room we'd left a few minutes before, I smiled down at my naked lover. "No. _You_ did it, Jake."

"Couldn't have reached that thing without you, Cullen." Jake's mouth twitched in pain. I tried to walk slowly, for once thanking my unusual vampire grace. It would keep his broken arm from jostling too much.

We met Carlisle, Embry, Seth and Alice when I'd walked a few hundred feet.

After I gently laid down Jake on the ground, Carlisle crouched and touched his arm gingerly.

"We're in luck, son, I won't have to break his arm again so it heals correctly. I'll have to set it right though."

Looking intently at my wolf, Carlisle said soothingly, "How did you manage to contain the threat, Jacob?"

"I just shifted and-" Jacob yelled when Carlisle twisted his arm sharply so the bone would heal in the correct position.

He panted, frowning at my father. "You could've warned me!"

I tore off the sleeve of my shirt and bent down to wipe the sweat off his brow.

"This way is better, Jacob." Carlisle stood up to take off his jacket, draping it gently around Jacob.

I looked at my sister. "Where's Alec?"

She sighed and then looked down at Jake. "There was something strange going on. We found the woman but there was some kind of light? The metal thingy rippled and a leg was thrown out at us. The poor woman fainted. Alec went to find Jane. They're going to gather Demetri and burn him so the mortals can't analyze his body.

\--

"How did you get rid of that thing, Jake? What did you call it, Edward, irregularity?" Seth was looking at us over the edge of the leather seat.

Jake sipped his cola. "Told you, Seth. It wasn't me but the wolf. I let him run the show. I just recalled dad's words. Guess when I shifted, the weakness or the thing that had been created was trapped inside the wolf's body. It hurt a lot."

I grimaced, in all the commotion, I had missed this part. I caressed Jacob's cheek while I whispered, "I'm sorry, wolf."

Leaning into my touch, he smiled at me. "Doesn't matter, Edward."

He looked sideways at Seth, who appeared to be bouncing on the seat as the plane hit a pocket of turbulence. "I let the wolf do what he wanted. He seemed to know the drill."

"But how could he?" Seth's brow puzzled in wonderment.

"My dad would say that the wolf is a spirit and they know much more than humans." Jake finished his drink, putting it on the tray in front of him.

Crossing his arms, he turned to look at me. "There's something I don't understand. Why did the old vampire that we found in Forks turn to stone?"

This was something I could answer. I'd been pondering the same question for a while. When Jane had volunteered certain information before she and Alec returned to Volterra, I knew my hunch had been right.

"That irregularity kept rippling, remember? It went along the collider, causing the scientists to scream in fear. By the way, they were so scared I don't think they'll repeat the experiment. My guess is that it had repercussions along time and space, _worldlines_ as Hawking calls them. They caused the vampire you met to catapult to our time, altering his body. The molecules changed slowly into stone."

I shook my head, recalling Hawking's voicemail. He'd mentioned that if conditions in the universe weren't adequate to create life, we wouldn't have evolved. There would be no one to ask why things were this way. Could it be that the world evolved vampires and shifters so we could deal with this kind of threat? When Jake touched the irregularity, he was affected and Alice could see him in her visions. Perhaps the rippling effects went back in time and affected the universe so we could exist. If so, we had been living in a parallel world all along.

But those speculations mattered little. We had prevailed, and more importantly, Jake survived. I kissed my wolf's brow while Seth whistled.

Disregarding the kid, I went on, "Jane told me that Demetri's body also turned to stone. They couldn't burn him, so they put him in a bag to be buried in Volterra."

I caressed Jake's palm with my index finger, rubbing the life line. "I think the rippling we observed made other people disappear too. Who knows? Maybe the man who walked around the horses was affected too."

"Who is that guy?"

"Tell you later, Seth." Jake smiled at the other Quileute. "Why don't you go pester Quil for a while?"

Seth winked at me. "If you want privacy for your talk with loverboy, you just had to ask, Jake."

After Seth made his way to the front of the plane, Jacob cupped my cheek. "Are we safe from the Volturi? Do you think they will try to kidnap me again?"

"Don't think so, wolf. Aro promised he'd let us be if we saved the world and we did. He is a man of his word. Besides with Demetri gone, Caius lost one of his biggest supporters. He won't be able to threaten you again."

Jake kissed me, his tongue snaking its way into my receptive mouth just as the wolf had invaded my life to stay. He murmured against my cheek, "You recall what you said on the restaurant, Edward?"

I nodded while I rubbed my thumb across his cheek. "I do."

"Now that the hallowed moon has passed, I'm going to have my wicked way with you."

"Looking forward to it, Jake."

 

 


	7. The invitation

It was a long flight from Europe. At some point in the middle of the Atlantic we decided to stop discussing the events that took place in Switzerland, or rather beneath it.

Jacob had taken a nap. He was a bit overwhelmed by the out-of-control collider and the feeling the world would end.

I watched his clear forehead as his eyelashes fluttered. His muscles twitched in his sleep while outside, the clouds flashed below us. Jacob dreamed of the verdant forest he knew so well, but then the landscape shifted and he was in the white, sterile collider. Pine trees abutted against the curved walls as a hole in the ceiling appeared, its jagged edges growing like a malignant mouth. The bright full moon appeared through the hole, leering down at Jacob.

The point of view shifted and I watched myself reaching down into the hole I'd punched through the metal cylinder. In Jacob's dream, my skin sparkled though there was no sun. A halo illuminated my face. I smirked, lightly touching Jake's shoulders. I loved it that he considered me so handsome.

My dream self turned to Jacob and said, "I love you, wolf. Wait for me…" My voice trailed off as I was sucked into the collider, and I watched myself break in pieces.

Jacob moaned in his sleep. I reclined on the leather seat, leaning down until my lips caressed his ear, whispering, "I'm fine, Jacob. It's just a dream."

Because I knew Jacob would not remember and I felt like a coward who could not utter such words to him face to face, I muttered then, "I love you, Jake."

The wolf smiled in his sleep while I brushed with my thumb his pouty lips. The imagery of his dream changed to green meadows, a riot of wildflowers springing everywhere.

I smiled tenderly, recognizing our secret place. My hand reaching for his, I laid both against his belly. Jacob grunted when he felt the soft touch against the silk shirt which hid the treasure of his lickable abs. I softly squeezed his palm.

The wolf had no more dreams.

* * *

\--

I managed to convince Jacob to spend the day at our house. He clearly suffered from jet lag, like his friends. Quil had rings around his eyes, Embry was morose and Seth quiet for a change.

We arrived home; Carlisle drove the Quileutes on his black Mercedes while I had the pleasure of having Jacob near me on my car.

My father offered to take Jake's friends to the border. "I might have to go the hospital to check on my patients."

Carlisle motioned Seth to the door. He touched his immaculate hair, looking pointedly at Jacob and me. His meaning was quite clear; I didn't have to read his thoughts to realize he was offering to spend the day away from home so we could have some privacy.

I nodded at him as he turned the leather wheel with an elegant motion. Carlisle winked at me through the rearview mirror as he drove away. Seth turned to wave goodbye at Jacob from the back seat of the Benz.

Holding her nose with her right hand, Rosalie glided out the door. She grimaced when she saw Jacob. "What's this dog doing in our house?"

"This dog, Blondie," Jake pointed to his bulging pecs, "happened to save your fucking world so you could go and spend gazillion dollars doing up your oh so beautiful hair."

God, Jacob was so sexy when he was angry and sarcastic! I wanted to throw him on the ground, take out his thick cock and ride him like a bronco.

Rosalie tried to hide her smile and failed miserably. She clapped silently with her hands. "Wow, the dog has spunk! You're better than Bella already!"

Jake scrunched up his face in confusion, looking so adorably cute I wanted to kiss him. I shrugged, recalling our desperate fight against the Volturi and then at the CERN collider. Time was fleeting, and given that I experienced viscerally the fact that the world could end at any time, I had to seize the moment - _carpe diem_ and all that.

I grabbed Jacob's shoulders and kissed those warm, soft lips. He gasped and held my face between his warm hands, opening his mouth and licking timidly at my teeth.

I could hear Emmett wolf-whistling from the threshold as I opened my mouth to Jake's sleek tongue, which was growing more aggressive by the second. Wrapping my arms around his back, I pulled him against me so our midriffs touched. The wolf hooked his left foot around mine and pushed it aside.

I moaned when our erections touched, becoming hornier by the second. Hearing my siblings, I smirked against Jake's mouth.

"Emmett, don't we have to go to the woods?"

"Rose, we just went hunting."

"Then take me to Sarah's boutique in Port Angeles. There's a dress I want to buy."

"Now?"

Jake's lips quirked upward, his tongue caressing my palate as he noticed Emmett's plaintive tone.

"Now!"

"Ouch, you're pulling my arm too roughly, Rose. I like it."

Jasper hummed an old Southern ditty from his youth. "It's time to make our move too, Alice."

"Why? Just when things are getting interesting and I'm getting an eyeful…"

"That boutique Rosalie mentioned? I heard the owner just brought the new Milanese fall collection."

Their footsteps receded in the distance as Jake cupped my erection through my pants.

He took a step back, staring hungrily at my swollen lips. His thoughts, hot and wild, rushed through my brain like liquid fire _. 'I like Jasper and Blondie. They are discreet. I wanna fuck.'_

I smirked, kissing the tip of his lovely nose. In the distance, I heard Emmett's whispering hoarsely in Rosalie's BMW. "Aww, that kiss was hot! Wanted to see what happens next"

"Don't be a voyeur, Emmett. Give them some space, we can watch them later."

* * *

\--

"I feel dirty, Cullen." Jacob rubbed his left bicep as we entered the house. His words conjured in my mind a flurry of intense erotic imagery. I pictured Jake's naked body, glistening in the shower as rivulets of soap ran down his pecs and abs towards his thick cock. I would kneel and lightly caress the tip with my tongue, moaning as I finally took him in my mouth.

"Don't know what you're thinking, Edward." The mutt pinched my ass, hard. "But your whimpers are making me horny."

"Let me show you the bathroom." I shakily pointed to the stairs. I was so aroused it made me want to fuck Jake. He looked so edible; he was wearing that nice Italian silk shirt Alice bought for him and his designer jeans looked poured on.

I couldn't contain myself. Picking him up bridal style, I rushed upstairs.

"Hey, lemme down." Belying Jake's words, in his mind I could see he was very turned on. Strangely enough, his erotic imagery kept shifting. One moment he was remembering when he was on all fours, the feeling of my cock plundering him and the next he was picturing himself plowing me as I lay face down on the mattress.

I could live with Jake's shifting thoughts; indeed, I yearned to explore all his facets. I suspected it would take a long time to get to know him. Eternity by his side would pass as swiftly as a ripple in that goddamned collider.

I opened the bathroom door and put him down. Grabbing his shirt, I yanked it up his arms, unmindful of the buttons that skittered across the white mosaic tiles. Alice wouldn't mind, she looked forward to buying more stuff for Jacob, who had a body to die for. This body I wanted to use to the fullest, consume him as he devoured me.

Jacob growled, tearing my shirt with a swift motion of his powerful arms. I took off my shoes, my pants, and underwear too fast for him to catch up. Looking down, I smiled when I watched the white bathroom floor, littered with our clothes.

I rushed to the shower stall, fiddling with the knobs while I tried to get the water just right.

_'Why do you bother, Ed? I can take the cold water.'_

I looked at Jake's reflection on the wall mirror. It showed his profile, the delectable curve of his ass, his strong thighs tapering to slim ankles, his perfect feet. Glancing up, I felt my hole twitch when I looked at his thick girth, jutting out from his black bush. His slim waist broadened into his wide chest and strong shoulders.

God, I needed him inside me as soon as possible! Jake's smirk as he caressed his girth, collecting a dollop of precome as he lazily swiped his thumb around his cockhead and slowly raised his hand to his lips - it made my cock throb angrily.

I answered his question, "I want hot vapor covering us. I… fantasized about it."

"Fine, fine. But I have other plans, Edward." He sauntered towards me, sliding open the shower door. Once inside, he pushed me against the wall, gently turning me around. He glanced back at the mirror on the opposite wall and in his mind I saw us, my pale skin contrasting so nicely against his russet-colored body.

Jake spread my thighs with his hands. I pushed my ass out as I leaned my head on my right forearm; the water of the shower head felt like prickling hot needles against my back, contrasting with the cool, beige wall tiles against my cheek.

Kneeling down, Jake nestled his face in the crease of my buttocks and lapped a swath downward until he reached my opening. I searched his mind desperately, trying to read his intentions but found nothing. The sneaky wolf concentrated on the imagery of woods and rivers as he ate me out. It was maddening, this being in tenterhooks and unaware of what Jake intended to do with me. I loved it.

My cock throbbing, I turned my face to look back at the mirror. I saw his muscled back and fuckable ass reflected in the mirror. His balls hung low as he licked me, Jake kept stroking his cock, pausing for a moment to caress his testicles.

I groaned, wanting to plunge my cock into that pink hole. But right now, if Jake didn't fuck me I was going to throw him down on the floor and ride him hard.

As if reading my thoughts, Jake chuckled against my hole, the vibrations made me moan and clench around his slippery tongue.

"Impatient much, Edward?" The gall of the mutt! I wanted to slap the sarcastic wolf until he shut up and fucked me!

I did the next best thing. Wiggling my behind, my hands went automatically to my cheeks, spreading myself wide open. I moaned brokenly, "Don't tease me!"

"I won't… much."

Feeling the pad of his finger rubbing my rim, I pushed back, desperate to feel him inside me. He worked his finger deeper until I felt his knuckles rubbing against my cheeks.

My cock was twitching madly. I needed release. I touched myself, holding my dick between my thumb and index finger, but Jake laughed and batted away my hand. He held my wrist as he wrapped his right arm around mine, our hands resting finally on the left side of my abdomen as he shuffled towards me. With his other hand he guided his cockhead towards my slick hole.

His chest touched my back and finally his cock pressed hard against my hole.

"Open up, Edward." His raspy voice made me shiver with desire. "Relax. I know how it feels… God, you're so tight and cold… love it… fuck... let me inside you, babe."

It was hard to relax as Jake told me. I wanted to come so badly. Jacob marveled at the coldness surrounding his cock, at the unyielding softness of my insides. His lips licked a path around my neck, biting hard on a spot near my ear which made me clench tighter.

The impatient man spread his legs and curled his toes, trying to find some purchase on the slippery wet tiles as he pushed forward, thrusting his hips. His cockhead passed my ring and he slid deeper into me, each inch deliciously stretching me.

"Edward, you feel great." Jake grunted, thrusting the rest of his cock inside me in a smooth move. His hot breath tickled my cheeks as he kissed me, licking his way into my lips. He started to withdraw.

I clenched, wanting to keep him inside as long as I could. Jake laughed, his prick slipping out until only the glans remained, the flanged cockhead stretching my rim. It made me feel a delightful burning sensation.

I grunted as my feet slid on the slippery tiles. "Move, dammit!"

Jacob pulled his cockhead out. I glanced back and my hole twitched, watching the wet shaft glistening in the bathroom light. He slapped his cock against my cheeks twice.

Then he knelt down and tugged my cock backwards, kissing my glans, devouring it. His wet tongue lapped my slit a moment later, his teeth scraping against my shaft. The wet cavern, combined with my pulsing, empty hole that had been so filled a few moments ago were overwhelming. The combined sensations were too much for me and I came with a shout, banging my fists against the tiles, cracking them up so that pieces fell to the floor.

Jacob swallowed my come. He stepped aside and crouched, spitting the thick liquid at his palm. Glancing at the mirror I could watch my hungry hole fluttering, demanding to be filled again. My flagging erection was quickly revived when Jake slipped his finger, sticky with my own come, inside me, rubbing against my inner walls, seeking that place that would make me see stars. When I whimpered, he knew he had found my prostate.

The wily wolf made a mental note of the location as he thrust inside my loosened hole once more. If I had been able to blush I would have done so; the squelching sounds of his cock as it pumped in and out of me were audible over the pitter-patter of water drops against the floor. I shuddered all over, feeling wanton. I'd never experienced this freedom to do what I wanted, to let go not caring what happened, to shout out to the world that Jake was mine. Not even with Bella.

What I felt for her was shallow compared to the pull of the feelings I had for my sexy lover, he was like a black hole that swallowed me.

I could read his emotions as he pistoned his cock in and out of me. The sensations of my cold sleeve caressing his shaft, rubbing it as he thrust out and back inside again were very similar to what I'd felt when I fucked him. The differences were intriguing, though there was a strange resonance.

When Jake's senses mixed with mine, I felt like I was fucking myself. I was so overwrought that when I chanced to look back at the mirror and saw Jake flexing his buttocks as he fucked his hips into mine, for a second I didn't know who was who.

I was lost and found. At long last, I'd found completeness.

Jake forced another orgasm of me. When he felt my hole spasming wildly against his cock, he smirked, feeling so satisfied I wanted to strangle him, the arrogant wolf! He couldn't hold out any longer and he came, flooding me with his very warm come. It felt so hot, as if he had poured thick, hot cream inside me.

His cock slipped out of me with a popping sound. Exhausted, my wolf slid to the floor, reclining his back against the wall where he'd fucked me.

I grabbed the bottle of liquid soap and upended. Leaning down, I tenderly washed his body, caressing his pecs and abs. This time, it was me who smirked. Despite his shapeshifting powers, Jake was still human and frail.

The brief moment of superiority passed like a summer cloud and I shivered, realizing how fragile he was.

He smiled at me trustingly. "Was it good, Ed?"

"The best I've had."

"You've had many?" Jake growled, the possessive side of the wolf coming to the fore.

As I soaped his tender cockhead, he cringed. I purposefully rubbed hard his glans as I answered my uppity wolf. "Only you, Jacob, only you."

* * *

\--

In the morning, Jake was flipping through the channels, resting his head against my lap. I ruffled the soft black hair, my lips quirking as I read his increasingly frustrated thoughts.

Finally he put the remote control on the table, turning his head to smile at me. "There's nothing good on TV. Just some vampire movies."

"Don't like Dracula, huh?"

His hand touched my chin. Rubbing his thumb against my lips, he smirked. "He's nothing like my own vamp. Anyway, I think that slick guy, Allo…"

"You mean Aro?"

"Sure, the black-haired one. He looked pretty shrewd." Jake motioned towards the plasma screen. "I wouldn't be surprised to know he'd manipulated people so they believe all that crap about garlic and running rivers and wooden stakes through the heart."

I nodded. "He might've done that."

He pouted, and it was so sexy that I felt my cock respond. "Didn't like it when he kidnapped me."

Feeling the growing bulge under his head, Jake sat up. He reclined his head against my shoulder, grimacing. "My ass is sore, Cullen, not to mention my cock. Is this what I will face if I live with you?"

I sighed, suddenly feeling very nervous. Perhaps I was too aggressive in our lovemaking. Had I released all the emotions and lust I'd kept guarded for decades on poor Jake? Would he find it too much and leave me?

I fiddled with the cuff of my shirt until Jake's hand closed around mine. He smiled cockily. "Wouldn't mind that, Edward. Wouldn't mind it at all."

I heard the beginning notes of the Black Eyed Peas' song, _'I gotta feeling.'_

Sighing, Jake reached for his phone on the table. Using my fine sense of hearing, I easily heard both sides of the conversation.

"What's up, Quil?"

"Jake, Sam wants…"

"What did he say? He ordered you to do something you didn't want, right? Well, I order you to…"

"Wasn't anything like that, Jake. He wants to talk to you is all."

Jake breathed a sigh of relief. "How are the others?"

"Seth's fine. Had to suffer Leah's talking to … but he's fine I guess. He's with me right now; we are at the Clearwater's."

"Hi, Jake!" Seth's voice sounded exuberant, even through the phone.

Jacob smiled broadly. "Hi, kid. Leah's tough, but remember she wants the best for you."

Seth replied sullenly, "She wants me to do more chores."

"Well, get-"

"Hi, Jake. Does your ass ache? Did you get a good pounding? I'll still respect you as Alpha, if you get my drift."

My wolf blushed deeply. "Embry, that's private, man!"

"Does that mean you fucked him then?"

Jake shrugged, glaring at the phone. "Went both ways, and that's the last I'm gonna tell you!"

"Aww, don't be like that, spoilsport. Quil has a boner, you know."

Quil shouted in the background. "Do not!"

"He does!" Seth said, laughing.

"Jake, gotta go. Leah just came in. I'm afraid of her."

"See you, man!"

Jake put the phone on the table, scowling. In his mind he was debating whether he should challenge Sam for the Alpha position. Somehow, fucking me had restored his confidence. He was thinking that if the pack made fun of him being a bottom, they would find out when they shifted that he topped, too. Topping a male vampire, who were considered very masculine by the Quileutes, carried its own prestige apparently. At least in Jake's mind.

Looking into my eyes, Jacob tried to verbalize his feelings. "Maybe I should challenge Sam. His decisions have become erratic, I think. He's too stubborn."

"I don't know the pack's dynamics as well as you do, Jacob. But I think you should think strategically."

Jake furrowed his brows. "What do you mean?"

I tried to explain what I knew of the Volturi's inner politics, which came mainly from my talks with Carlisle. "We did a great service to the Volturi, especially you. Aro won't forget that. More importantly, he's been made aware of the shifters' true powers. Whatever Caius demands, Marcus and Aro won't concede so easily. Jasper and I talked on the plane while you slept; he thinks Aro will keep an eye on Forks."

Jake licked his lips, frowning at the table. "You mean if rogue vampires come here, the Volturi guys will help deal with them?"

"Jasper thinks they won't allow newborns here. Aro tries to gather all the powerful vampires around him. If you were one already, he'd try to recruit you. But since you're a shifter, Jasper said Aro won't do that, and I concur."

The wolf shrugged, his right hand patting his abdomen. "So?"

I motioned towards the woods outside the windows. "You and the Quileutes are a resource. The triumvirate won't allow harm to come to Forks."

Recalling what I'd read in Jake's mind, his dreams of leaving Forks and making a future for himself, I said, "I've an idea. You love tinkering with cars, right?"

Jake grinned. "You know I do."

"Why don't you go to college?"

"I don't have the money, Cullen." He held up his hands. "And no, I won't allow you to pay my tuition."

"I won't have to. I'm not sure, but you might be able to get a scholarship."

Jake shuffled his bare feet on the cold floor. "You think so?"

I touched his wrist, tracing a path to his forearm. "I hope so. Tell you what; I'll go with you if the college is up north. Maybe Alaska?"

* * *

\--

**Juneau, Alaska  
One year later**

I licked Jake's cock, teasing the slit with my tongue. Nudging it with my nose I smelled the scent that was pure Jake.

The morning light streamed through the window of our apartment in Dorothy Drive, near East Tudor Road. The sun peeked from behind the white-capped mountains a mile away, visible through the windows. Jake and I knew them well. If his schedule at the college wasn't too heavy, Jake accompanied me when I hunted. His wolf senses often pinpointed the animals that were old and didn't have much time to live.

His cock was at half mast; my poor wolf was tired because of his hard schedule. He often studied late at night. Juggling his studies with the part-time job he held in a car shop, we often did not have time to indulge in lovemaking.

Even so, I was having the time of my life. I'd composed several pieces. Between hunting, keeping in touch with my family and living with Jake, I was very busy. This reminded me of the task I had set myself, to sensually wake him up.

I put his glans inside my mouth, caressing it with my tongue as I touched my groin, massaging my own prick as his started growing on my mouth. Jake's mind became sharper, clearer. He started thrusting up his hips, eager to get more wet coldness around his prick.

The notes of a Chopin piece made me stop, reluctantly. Jake grunted in disappointment as I crouched over him, reaching for the phone on the night table.

"Yes?"

"Edward, it's me. We've come to visit. Emmett's here, Jasper and Rosalie too." Alice paused, measuring her words. "We're outside the door. We didn't want to barge in, since the last time I visited I found you and Jake in a… compromising position."

He sat on the bed, looking for his clothes. We often slept in the nude. "Pixie, come in! Edward was giving me a treat. It will have to wait though."

I groaned in disappointment as I threw the phone on the bed. I dressed fast. I was on my way to the living room when Alice opened the door using her key. She strolled into the hall, wearing her usual stylish clothes, Emmett and the others right behind her.

"Hi, Edward. The wolf giving you trouble? Just say the word and I'll wrestle with him. Who knows where it'll end…"

Rosalie kicked Emmett's shin. "You've forgotten me, dear."

Sniffing the air, my blonde sister pointed towards the bedroom. "As usual, your pup smells unbearably awful."

Jake shouted from the bedroom, "Heard you loud and clear, Blondie!" A few seconds later he sauntered into the living room, wearing his usual jeans and sleeveless shirt. I licked my lips at the gorgeous vision.

"Hello, Blondie, Alice." Jake nodded to my sisters and made his way to Emmett, who clapped his shoulders.

"Em, I might take you up for a wrestling match some day." Disregarding my growl, Jake shook his head. "It's just physical stuff, Edward. I might be gaining a few pounds. I need to burn some calories."

"Whenever you want, Jake." Turning to look at his scowling mate, Emmett cocked his eyebrow. "Rose and Edward had better be there, though."

I embraced Alice, murmuring in her ear, "Where's Jasper?"

"I'm here, Edward." My brother opened the door, his left hand stuck in the back pocket of his slacks. "Had to find a parking spot."

Jake waved hello and went to the kitchen to fix breakfast.

"Why are you here? We visited you guys a month ago. How's my dad?" I could hear Jacob cracking open some eggs, then the opening and closing of the cabinets he kept fully stocked with spices. Because he was running late, he just put the eggs in the blender, preparing a milk shake.

"He's fine, dog. Your sister, I forget her name…"

"Rebecca, Blondie. Her name's Rebecca!"

"Whatever." Rosalie shrugged, examining her perfectly manicured nails. "Seth told us he's doing fine; your sister and her husband are taking good care of Billy."

"You said Billy, you like him!"

"He doesn't smell like wet dog!" Rosalie smiled secretively.

Reading Alice's thoughts, I frowned. She held up her hands, motioning towards the kitchen.

Jake came out a minute later. He had a trace of milk moustache on his upper lip which looked adorable.

Alice went up to him and with her index finger wiped the milk I wanted to lick off his face. "You haven't told Edward about your plans?"

"What plans?" I frowned at them. It was maddening when they kept things from me.

Jacob looked at his watch. He grabbed the bag where he kept his books and an old HP notebook. He kissed me, murmuring against my lips, "I'll tell you when I get back, ok? I'm running behind my schedule as it is."

* * *

\--

Jake bit his lip, staring at me. He fiddled with the waistband of his slacks. My wolf was thinking about the woods near Forks, a trick he'd developed when he didn't want me to pry in his thoughts. All this secrecy was making me nervous.

"Emmett, won't you turn down the TV? Jacob has something interesting to say." Alice looked up briefly from her Vogue magazine, smiling reassuringly at Jacob.

"The game is tied! I need to-"

Rosalie forcibly took the remote control from Emmett and turned off the TV. "There, now out with it, pup!"

"Rose, you're too forceful." Jasper frowned, looking at the snow-peaked mountains.

Jake ruffled his hair as I cocked an eyebrow at him. He wasn't bothered by my siblings' banter. In the months we'd been together, he'd created strong ties with them. They considered him a part of the family now. Jake treated them like they were his pack, which they were in a sense. They'd become Jacob's pack, as well as our coven.

My sneaky lover glanced at me as he stood up and started pacing around the couch where I sat.

"You know there's a convention of alumni of the University of Alaska?"

I nodded. "I've met some of them. Their cars take up a lot of space though, I've had to park my own a block away."

"I was talking with two professors from Fairbanks. They're Inuits. We talked about legends. They were fascinated by our myths."

"Was it something about the hallowed moon?" I shuddered just thinking about that particular legend and what it wrought.

Jake motioned with his hand towards the window. "No, it was a pretty intense talk though. I guess they made me realize something."

"And that is?"

Jake squared his shoulders, taking a deep breath. "They offered me a full scholarship at the Department of Anthropology at Fairbanks."

"But you've worked so hard at your current major, Jake. You're doing great!" Emmett crossed his arms, smiling at the Quileute.

"You're right, Emmett. I was looking forward to the dog getting a mechanical engineering degree." Rosalie frowned, twisting a curl of blond hair around her fingers.

In his mind, Jacob was weighing the options. I fingered the cover of his notebook. "I think you'd do great anywhere, Jake."

Taking a deep breath, he sat beside me. "Talking about our legends made me realize they were really important. The vision the Third Wife had? The fact my father remembered it and told me allowed us to take care of the high-tech experiment which ran amok and threatened to destroy the world."

I nodded as I put my arm on his shoulder. "That's true."

"At the end, it wasn't those computers and lasers and whatnot that saved us, but our myths." Jake's eyes shined with enthusiasm as he went on. "I want to learn more about the legends of other tribes. The Inuits, the Ojibwa, so many others. I want to travel the world with you, Ed. Go to Canada, Russia, learn their tales. Return to the Rez after a while and teach them to the young kids."

"That would be great, wolf!" I leaned towards Jacob to kiss those full lips. The best part was that most of the places he mentioned would probably have heavy cloud cover and very long nights, allowing me to mingle as much as I could with the mortals he'd be friends with.

After rummaging in the pocket of his trousers, Jake put his arms around me. His hand slid along my forearm until it reached my right palm. The wolf put a small package on it.

I broke the contact to glance at it. It was a black jewelry box, a bit tattered. I lifted the cover, finding a simple golden ring.

"Will you marry me, Edward?" His voice was tinged with doubt, unlike his usual sarcastic self.

The wily wolf knew the exact moment to strike. I'd been so distracted with his story I hadn't paid the slightest attention to his thoughts, which he had been learning to camouflage anyway.

I hugged him tight, mindful not to use my whole strength. "Of course, Jacob Black! I'll marry you!"

My siblings clapped loudly. Emmett wolf-whistled, thumping Jake's shoulders so hard my fiancé winced. I rolled the words on my mouth, "My fiancé."

"Sure, sure. Edward, my vampire fiancé."

Jasper whispered to Alice. "You saw this in a vision, right?"

"Not exactly. There was a period when I saw Jake clearly, as I told Edward. That lasted for a short while. But since the incident in Switzerland, my visions about Jake shift constantly, he escapes me."

Alice mentally measured Jake and I, her mind ruffling through tuxedos like it held a huge catalog. She muttered, "I knew this would come to pass, call it feminine intuition."

Jake hugged me, holding me aloft in his arms as he twirled me around in circles.

* * *

\--

**Three months later  
Volterra, Italy**

Aro glanced at the white envelope, reading the address.

 _The Resident_  
Vicolo del Torna 9  
Volterra, Italy

Aro's pale hand opened it. The Volturi leader smiled sweetly at the contents.

" _Il caro_ _Edoardo_ is going to marry the young wolf."

Marcus' august visage grimaced. "You are not planning to turn the young man, are you? It would ruin their bond most horribly."

The vampire rose from his seat with ethereal grace, as if he was a Michelangelo statue come to life. "Such unique ties between them, conceived in hate and anger, forged with a love I've never seen in thousands of years."

"Of course I won't. I touched _il caro Jacoppo_ when he was our prisoner. His thoughts were so vivid, his abilities so strong, I'm sure he will aid us immensely."

"Caius won't like that."

"We'll persuade him. If the fool mortals keep tinkering with things they don't fully understand, Jacoppo and his tribe will prove immeasurably useful in years to come."

Marcus glided to the window. Moving aside the heavy damask curtain, he peered at the sun-kissed rooftops of Volterra. "I trust you, Aro. You've never led us astray."

Aro joined Marcus at the window. The rays of the setting sun fell upon their faces, making them appear like Roman statues hewn out of two diamonds.

The Volturi leader sighed wistfully. "Do you remember when Etruria was young, bristling with life? The uppity Romans were hard to deal with but we coped. Their Empire lasted but little, a mere thousand years."

Marcus laid a hand on Aro's shoulder, rubbing the leather coat. "Remember the Renaissance prince who thought he was your match?"

Aro laughed delightedly. "The upstart Medici! He didn't know one of his trusted Swiss guards was a Volturi."

Gazing at the twilight setting over Tuscany, Aro crossed his arms. "The world is still young, _caro mio._ We must guard it always, for without our prey we would die. And that would be a pity."

* * *

\--

**March 20th  
Forks, Washington**

I could hear Bella crying as we said our vows. She sat in the front row, beautiful as always, clasping tightly the hand of her fiancé. I had forgotten his name.

Alice passed her a lace handkerchief. I was sure Esmée would be crying if she were able to. Next to my mother, Emmett beamed at us. His left hand lightly held Rosalie's elbow. My blonde sister was beautiful in her red silk dress.

Jasper was frowning. In his mind he was counting the minutes until the wedding ended. It wasn't that he didn't like the ceremony but so many people overwhelmed him.

On the other aisle, Jacob's friends fidgeted, uncomfortably wearing their formal clothes. They too wanted the ceremony to end so they could get to the reception and eat. Quil jostled Embry while Seth beamed at us.

Leah Clearwater, beautiful in a black dress, was frowning at Jacob's two sisters, Rebecca and Rachel, who flanked Billy.

Throughout the ceremony, Jacob kept turning to look at his father, worrying whether Rebecca was taking good care of him.

Billy Black smiled warmly at his son and pointed to the Inuit shaman so Jake would pay attention. The old man who officiated was actually one of Jacob's anthropology teachers at Fairbanks.

Though my wolf didn't tell him anything, the shaman knew we were vampires and shapeshifters. The old man gazed with wonder at all of us, especially at the four people far on the back. Aro and Marcus had made the long journey from Tuscany. They were in the darkest part of the hall, flanked by their guards, Jane and Alec.

The shaman coughed discreetly. Jacob and I turned to face him; both of us were so nervous we'd been glancing all around.

"You may kiss your husband and mate."

I held up Jake's right hand, the one which saved the world. I lifted it to my lips and softly kissed his knuckles. Looking to the man I loved, I beheld his face. My gaze slid down his smooth russet-colored forehead, down his perfect eyebrows and pert nose, lingering in…

\--

… the ever mutable amber eyes that had become my own hallowed moon. They changed like Her, becoming dark with hunger and arousal, light with joy and peace. They saw so much in me I didn't know was there. In those eyes I was more than a Quileute, a shapeshifter. I was Edward's, forevermore.

I touched his bronze hair, tracing his pale cheeks with my thumb. Edward often thought he was a soulless monster, bereft of good qualities. I would have to spend eternity to convince him otherwise. It was something I yearned to do, for this man had touched me, his love made my heart shift like quicksilver. That soul he despaired of having? I knew it existed because he had planted a part of it deep inside me.

I kissed Edward with all the passion in the world, and I was complete at last.

* * *

**THE END**


End file.
